Virginians looking to stretch their housing dollars may find some of the state's best bargains far from its expensive Northern Virginia suburbs, according to a new ranking of the cheapest places to live in the commonwealth.
Real estate platform Houzeo ranked Bristol as Virginia's most affordable city, citing a median home price of $205,500, monthly rent of $983 and a cost of living 18 percent below the state average. Danville, Martinsville, Pulaski and Roanoke rounded out the top five.
Houzeo evaluated hundreds of communities using median home prices, median rent and overall cost of living. The analysis examined housing data from 2022 through 2025 and was updated Aug. 1.
The ranking includes several communities in Southwest and Southern Virginia, where housing costs remain substantially below those in more expensive parts of the state. Martinsville had the lowest median home price on the list at $117,500, while Bristol had the lowest monthly rent at $983.
Here's how Houzeo ranked Virginia's 10 cheapest places to live
Houzeo said it used its Virginia housing market data on home prices and compared those figures with the University of Virginia's Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service. Rent and cost-of-living figures came from the Council for Community and Economic Research, while the analysis was also cross-checked against federal and state economic reports.
The figures also show why the overall ranking isn't based on home prices alone. Martinsville had the cheapest homes, for example, but Bristol took the No. 1 spot after Houzeo factored in rent and other living expenses
Learn more about Virginia's most affordable cities.
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