Best PlacesWashoe Valley, NV Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Washoe Valley, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Local pay runs high here, and housing takes the biggest bite out of it. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
Washoe Valley ranks 10,363rd of 50,333 U.S. towns on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on state infrastructure by a wide margin, and disaster risk is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in Washoe Valley
BestNeighborhood is the only ranking that scores 40 measures of daily life neighborhood by neighborhood and lets you re-weight every one of them yourself.
Washoe Valley's strengths and weaknesses
Where Washoe Valley ranks high
- State infrastructureBetter than 98% of towns
- Nice weatherabout 179 pleasant days a year, better than 98% of towns
- Household income$124,631 median, better than 94% of towns
- Low vacancyBetter than 92% of towns
- State fiscal healthBetter than 92% of towns
Where Washoe Valley ranks low
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 6% of towns
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 12% of towns
- Air qualityBetter than only 13% of towns
- Cheap childcare$1,122 a month, better than only 15% of towns
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than only 16% of towns
What it costs to buy a home in Washoe Valley
A household needs to earn about $189,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Washoe Valley home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $124,631, so buying stretches a typical household.
Where the monthly payment goes
Assumes a 20% down payment, a 6.6% 30-year fixed rate, and a 28% share of income going to the payment. The rate is the 2026-07-23 30-year fixed average, series MORTGAGE30US from the St. Louis Fed, which publishes Freddie Mac's weekly survey. Against the median home value, property tax uses Washoe Valley's effective rate of 0.45%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices, buying tends to cost more than renting for about the first 7 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Washoe Valley
Washoe Valley runs older than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Washoe Valley.
Who works in Washoe Valley, and how
Work in Washoe Valley centers on construction and health care & social. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 83%
- Work from home 14%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in Washoe Valley
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across Washoe Valley.
What the weather is like in Washoe Valley, month by month
Washoe Valley sees roughly 179 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 92 degrees. January highs sit near 47, with lows near 25. The comfortable stretch runs May, June, August, and September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 47° | 35° | 25° |
| April | 65° | 51° | 37° |
| July | 92° | 76° | 58° |
| October | 70° | 52° | 36° |
Flying in and out of Washoe Valley
The nearest airport, Reno/Tahoe International, is about 15 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Sacramento International, about 105 miles away.
The best schools in and around Washoe Valley
Schools across Washoe Valley average a B−, better than 58% of towns.
Top elementary schools
- Pleasant Valley ElementaryB · 47% proficient
- Edith W. Fritsch ElementaryB− · 41% proficient
- Incline ElementaryC− · 29% proficient
Top middle schools
- Kendyl Depoali Middle SchoolB+ · 49% proficient
- Carson Middle SchoolC · 32% proficient
- Incline Middle SchoolD · 23% proficient
Top high schools
- Incline High SchoolB− · 43% proficient
- Damonte Ranch High SchoolC+ · 40% proficient
- Carson High SchoolC · 32% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Washoe Valley school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Washoe Valley measure by measure
Cards are ordered by how much each measure matters to you, so the ones you weighted highest come first. Expand to see every measure. Percentages compare Washoe Valley against the other 50,332 towns.
Common questions about living in Washoe Valley
Is Washoe Valley a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Washoe Valley ranks 10,363rd of 50,333 towns. It scores highest on state infrastructure, the weather, and high incomes, and lowest on disaster risk and an overheated housing market. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Washoe Valley expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $758,946. The overall cost of living runs about 13% above the national average. Set against a $124,631 median income, cost of living beats 88% of towns.
Is Washoe Valley safe?
Washoe Valley is safer than 21% of towns. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $554 per resident a year.
Compare Washoe Valley with other towns
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Washoe Valley. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Washoe Valley represents the same real quantity as a 60 anywhere else, and the ranking is a weighted average of those absolutes. The map colors come from a national scale calibrated against a population weighted random sample of 5,000 neighborhoods. That absolute scoring is what no other places-to-live ranking does: it puts a single neighborhood, a town, a metro, and a state on one scale, so the same 40 measures answer both which metro to move to and which street inside it to buy on. Read the full methodology.
Washoe Valley detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Washoe Valley: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Washoe Valley: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Washoe Valley: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Washoe Valley: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Washoe Valley detail on related sites:
- CrimeGrade: neighborhood crime rates behind the crime safety score.
- ISPreports.org: provider by provider internet availability and advertised speeds.
- CoverageWatch: the car insurance premiums behind the cheap car insurance score.
Federal and public data:
- U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey: income, home value, rent, vacancy, commute time and mode, educational attainment, home age, age structure, household type, industry, and race.
- NOAA Global Surface Summary of the Day: the daily station record behind the monthly temperatures and the pleasant-day count.
- FAA Passenger Boarding Data: airport size and annual passenger counts.
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey: the 30-year fixed rate used in the cost-to-buy estimate.
- FBI Crime Data Explorer: reported offenses behind the tangible crime cost estimate.
- U.S. EPA Air Quality System: five year average air quality index.
- FEMA National Risk Index: expected annual loss from natural hazards.
- CDC PLACES: disease burden, preventable risk, and barriers to care.
- National Center for Education Statistics: school enrollment and assessment inputs behind the school grade.
- FCC National Broadband Map: internet and wireless availability.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: employment and job growth behind the local economy score.
- Religious activity uses a proprietary religious signal measurement.
Your priorities
Move a slider to say how much a measure matters. Zero turns it off.