Suppose real estate is the most significant investment a majority of people make in their lifetime. In that case, it’s best to understand the places in Virginia with best potential return on investment.
After working in real estate adjacent roles for over a decade, I had the hypothesis that the best place to buy for a return on investment would be up-and-coming cities. Smaller cities where crime might be high now, but people still move to.
To test my hypothesis, we are going to look at places in Virginia that are growing faster than average, but where home prices are below average, and crime rates are higher than average.
In everyday terms, these might be “deals”. The best deal in Virginia at the moment according to Saturday Night Science? That would be Bluefield.
Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table
The 10 Best Places To Buy A Home In Virginia For 2024
The methodology that wen’t into this can be a bit complicated, so we’ll break it down for you in as much detail as we can below.
For more Virginia reading:
- Best Counties To Live In Virginia
- Best Places To Raise A Family In Virginia
- Best Places To Retire In Virginia
The 10 Best Cities To Buy A House In Virginia For 2024
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Population: 5,221
Median Home Price: $123,719
Population Change: -1.1%
Home Price Change: 6.4%
More on Big Stone Gap: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
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Population: 5,798
Median Home Price: $305,557
Population Change: 1.4%
Home Price Change: 5.2%
More on Woodstock: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
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Population: 5,266
Median Home Price: $100,563
Population Change: -0.6%
Home Price Change: 6.4%
More on Richlands: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
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Population: 5,680
Median Home Price: $132,687
Population Change: -1.4%
Home Price Change: 4.9%
More on Emporia: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
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Population: 5,697
Median Home Price: $537,443
Population Change: 0.5%
Home Price Change: 2.3%
More on Dumfries: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
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Population: 5,722
Median Home Price: $144,743
Population Change: -1.6%
Home Price Change: 5.2%
More on Marion: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
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Population: 5,722
Median Home Price: $129,579
Population Change: 0.1%
Home Price Change: 4.8%
More on Covington: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
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Population: 6,575
Median Home Price: $340,657
Population Change: 7.9%
Home Price Change: 7.4%
More on Bridgewater: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
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Population: 6,687
Median Home Price: $162,413
Population Change: 0.1%
Home Price Change: 2.6%
More on Galax: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
Methodology: How do you determine the best places to buy a home in Virginia for 2024?
We were in real estate for almost five years and have worked on this site for another 9. Suffice it to say we’ve put a lot of thought into finding an excellent place to buy a home.
So all that thinking has come to this moment where we get to spell out how we’d approach finding an up-and-coming place to live in Virginia. Put differently, the analysis will try to find places in Virginia with undervalued homes relative to pent-up demand using Saturday Night Science.
To do that, we looked at the most recent American Community Survey Census data for 2018-2022 and compared it to the previous vintage. Specifically, we used the following criteria:
- Y-o-Y Change In Population (People want to live here)
- Y-o-Y Change In Median Home Prices (People are willing to pay for it)
- Home Prices Relative To The State Average (It’s still kinda cheap)
We want places that are growing, have seen home prices increase in recent years, and are still “cheap” for Virginia with the following caveats:
- Home prices had to be within 20% of the state average (Much lower than that, and you get to some of the more dangerous places)
- Home prices increased in the last year, and
- Above 5,000 people (Bigger cities have more data points)
So of the 0 cities and towns in Virginia, only 62 places made it through our initial filters to even be considered.
We then ranked each place from 1 to 62 for the above criteria, with 1 being the best. We averaged the rankings to create a “best place to buy” index, with the place having the lowest index being the best.
Turns out that Bluefield is the best potential gem in the not-so-rough in the Old Dominion.
Summary: The Best Places To Purchase A House In Virginia for 2024
There’s our analysis of the best places to buy a house in Virginia. And, to be clear, we aren’t necessarily saying these places are the best places to live, just that it looks like they might be in a couple of years based on the data.
In fact, every place in the following table meets our criteria, so even though it may not look super long, remember we started off with all 0 places in the state.
The best cities to buy a house in Virginia are Bluefield, Big Stone Gap, Woodstock, Richlands, Emporia, Dumfries, Marion, Covington, Bridgewater, and Galax.
So if we’d could rent or buy in these cities, we’d definitely buy.
For more Virginia reading, check out:
Best Places To Buy A Home In Virginia
| Rank | City | Population | Median Home Price | Population Change | Home Price Increase |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bluefield | 5,059 | $122,214 | -0.4% | 6.1% |
| 2 | Big Stone Gap | 5,221 | $123,719 | -1.1% | 6.4% |
| 3 | Woodstock | 5,798 | $305,557 | 1.4% | 5.2% |
| 4 | Richlands | 5,266 | $100,563 | -0.6% | 6.4% |
| 5 | Emporia | 5,680 | $132,687 | -1.4% | 4.9% |
| 6 | Dumfries | 5,697 | $537,443 | 0.5% | 2.3% |
| 7 | Marion | 5,722 | $144,743 | -1.6% | 5.2% |
| 8 | Covington | 5,722 | $129,579 | 0.1% | 4.8% |
| 9 | Bridgewater | 6,575 | $340,657 | 7.9% | 7.4% |
| 10 | Galax | 6,687 | $162,413 | 0.1% | 2.6% |
| 11 | Buena Vista | 6,639 | $166,310 | -0.2% | 2.4% |
| 12 | Strasburg | 7,104 | $311,196 | 1.0% | 4.1% |
| 13 | Lexington | 7,346 | $313,583 | 0.8% | 0.6% |
| 14 | South Boston | 7,942 | $128,262 | -0.9% | 5.9% |
| 15 | Ashland | 7,617 | $394,438 | 1.9% | 6.2% |
| 16 | Wytheville | 8,228 | $197,791 | -0.4% | 6.2% |
| 17 | Abingdon | 8,346 | $263,435 | -0.0% | 9.9% |
| 18 | Franklin | 8,194 | $212,203 | -0.7% | 3.3% |
| 19 | Vinton | 8,045 | $249,931 | 0.1% | 6.8% |
| 20 | Farmville | 7,647 | $237,401 | 5.2% | 3.3% |
| 21 | Smithfield | 8,625 | $360,172 | 1.3% | 1.5% |
| 22 | Pulaski | 8,982 | $145,235 | -0.0% | -1.5% |
| 23 | Warrenton | 10,111 | $605,326 | 1.1% | 3.9% |
| 24 | Purcellville | 8,928 | $788,454 | 0.2% | 3.4% |
| 25 | Poquoson | 12,479 | $419,118 | 0.8% | 4.1% |
| 26 | Martinsville | 13,539 | $117,492 | 0.5% | 4.4% |
| 27 | Falls Church | 14,576 | $693,453 | 0.6% | 4.5% |
| 28 | Williamsburg | 15,486 | $422,921 | 1.2% | 6.3% |
| 29 | Front Royal | 15,064 | $339,972 | 0.2% | 4.4% |
| 30 | Vienna | 16,401 | $1,007,468 | -0.4% | 3.0% |
| 31 | Bristol | 17,036 | $191,989 | 0.2% | 9.7% |
| 32 | Colonial Heights | 18,158 | $268,411 | 0.2% | 3.9% |
| 33 | Manassas Park | 17,123 | $410,921 | 0.2% | 3.7% |
| 34 | Radford | 16,379 | $239,703 | 1.1% | 4.3% |
| 35 | Culpeper | 20,105 | $404,059 | 1.8% | 4.3% |
| 36 | Waynesboro | 22,341 | $277,470 | 0.9% | 3.9% |
| 37 | Christiansburg | 22,947 | $278,006 | -1.0% | 4.1% |
| 38 | Hopewell | 23,046 | $209,023 | 0.1% | 0.9% |
| 39 | Fairfax | 24,242 | $702,237 | 1.1% | 3.7% |
| 40 | Herndon | 24,456 | $679,629 | -0.5% | 2.9% |
| 41 | Staunton | 25,581 | $275,801 | 0.9% | 4.2% |
| 42 | Salem | 25,372 | $268,647 | 0.1% | 5.8% |
| 43 | Winchester | 28,103 | $356,203 | -0.3% | 3.7% |
| 44 | Fredericksburg | 28,258 | $429,414 | 0.8% | 3.9% |
| 45 | Petersburg | 33,261 | $227,187 | 0.1% | 2.8% |
| 46 | Danville | 42,507 | $137,067 | -0.1% | 8.7% |
| 47 | Manassas | 42,620 | $514,283 | 0.1% | 3.5% |
| 48 | Blacksburg | 45,147 | $389,094 | 1.7% | 3.4% |
| 49 | Charlottesville | 46,289 | $460,428 | -0.7% | 3.4% |
| 50 | Harrisonburg | 51,784 | $316,643 | -0.5% | 3.5% |
| 51 | Leesburg | 48,465 | $757,521 | 0.5% | 4.1% |
| 52 | Lynchburg | 79,166 | $242,735 | 0.2% | 8.4% |
| 53 | Suffolk | 94,856 | $346,835 | 1.7% | 5.3% |
| 54 | Portsmouth | 97,384 | $238,266 | -0.1% | 5.7% |
| 55 | Roanoke | 99,213 | $247,891 | -0.4% | 6.7% |
| 56 | Hampton | 137,217 | $251,468 | 0.3% | 7.1% |
| 57 | Alexandria | 157,594 | $611,500 | -0.4% | 3.1% |
| 58 | Newport News | 185,118 | $263,687 | 0.0% | 6.9% |
| 59 | Richmond | 227,171 | $328,655 | 0.7% | 2.0% |
| 60 | Chesapeake | 249,377 | $374,172 | 0.9% | 5.0% |
| 61 | Norfolk | 236,973 | $284,301 | -0.7% | 6.1% |
| 62 | Virginia Beach | 457,900 | $384,137 | 0.1% | 6.6% |