Virginia Beach, Virginia

Cost of Living & Housing

What does it cost to live in Virginia Beach?

A snapshot of the local real estate market and day-to-day affordability compared to the Hampton Roads region.

$375K

Median Home Price

$1,850

Avg. Monthly Rent

103

Cost of Living Index

1.0%

Property Tax Rate

62%

Homeownership Rate

Buying in Virginia Beach

Virginia Beach offers a wide range of price points — from affordable townhomes in the $250s in areas like Kempsville and Bayside, to waterfront estates topping $1M+ near Sandbridge or the North End oceanfront. The median sits around $375,000, where you can typically find a 3–4 bedroom single-family home with a yard. The market has been competitive but more balanced in 2025–2026, with increased inventory giving buyers more breathing room than during the pandemic frenzy. New construction is active in the southern parts of the city — Princess Anne and Landstown/Red Mill — offering modern floor plans with HOA amenities.

VA Loan Tip: Virginia Beach is one of the most VA-loan-friendly markets in the country. With one of the largest military populations in the nation, sellers here are experienced with VA financing, and Danielle can help you navigate offers that compete on terms — not just price — so your benefit goes further.

Renting in Virginia Beach

Apartment rents average $1,600–$2,000/month for a 2-bedroom, with single-family home rentals ranging from $1,800–$2,800 depending on location and size. Oceanfront and Town Center areas command the highest rents; neighborhoods like Kempsville and Great Neck offer more value. Short-term and month-to-month leases are more available here than in many markets, given the steady military PCS turnover — many landlords are veterans themselves who understand the lifestyle. Pet-friendly rentals are abundant, and proximity to NAS Oceana and JEB Little Creek makes finding military-convenient housing relatively straightforward.

◆ Pet-Friendly Options ◆ Month-to-Month Available ◆ Near Gate Access

Schools & Family Life

Raising a family in Virginia Beach

From public school ratings to youth activities, here's what families moving to Virginia Beach should know.

Public Schools

Virginia Beach City Public Schools (VBCPS) is one of the top-rated school divisions in Virginia, serving approximately 67,000 students across 86 schools. The division consistently outperforms state averages on standardized tests and offers extensive specialty and magnet programs, including the Governor's STEM Academy at Princess Anne High School, the International Baccalaureate program at Cox High School, and Fine & Performing Arts academies. VBCPS has a strong understanding of military families and offers enrollment support for mid-year transfers — a real advantage during PCS season.

School	Level	Rating
Thoroughgood Elementary	Elementary	8/10
Corporate Landing Middle	Middle	8/10
Frank W. Cox High School	High School	9/10
Princess Anne High School	High School	8/10
Ocean Lakes High School	High School	8/10

Private & Charter Options

Virginia Beach has a robust private school landscape. Norfolk Academy (just across the city line) is the most academically prestigious option in the region. Locally, Cape Henry Collegiate offers Pre-K through 12th grade with strong college prep. Faith-based options include Virginia Beach Friends School, Bishop Sullivan Catholic High School (diocesan), and several Christian academies. Tuition generally ranges from $8,000–$20,000/year depending on level and institution.

Higher Education Nearby

Regent University and Old Dominion University (ODU) both have campuses in or near Virginia Beach. Tidewater Community College (TCC) has a large Virginia Beach campus and is particularly popular with military spouses pursuing degrees. ODU offers extensive tuition assistance and ROTC programs. Liberty University Online is a common choice for active duty personnel finishing degrees remotely.

Family Activities & Recreation

Virginia Beach is an exceptional place to raise kids. The 35-mile oceanfront is the city's centerpiece, with the 3-mile boardwalk offering family entertainment year-round. First Landing State Park offers trails and camping right in the city. Mount Trashmore Park is a beloved family hub with playgrounds and a skate park. Youth sports leagues (baseball, soccer, lacrosse) are thriving, and the Virginia Aquarium & Marine Science Center is a standout educational attraction.

Safety

How safe is Virginia Beach?

Crime data, neighborhood-level safety, and context for what the numbers actually mean day to day.

2.8

Violent Crime Rate (per 1K)

16

Property Crime Rate (per 1K)

Violent Crime

SaferLess Safe

Property Crime

SaferLess Safe

Virginia Beach recorded its lowest violent crime rates in five years in 2025, according to the Virginia Beach Police Department. The city's rates are meaningfully below the national average. Crime is concentrated in a handful of corridors near the resort strip (particularly on busy summer weekends) and some older commercial areas off Newtown Road — the vast majority of residential neighborhoods, especially in the north and south of the city, are consistently safe and family-friendly.

Neighborhood Safety Breakdown

The Great Neck and North End areas are consistently among the safest in the city — quieter, with high homeownership and well-established neighborhoods. Suburban areas like Red Mill, Landstown, and Princess Anne Courthouse are newer planned communities with very low crime. The Oceanfront resort district sees elevated summer activity (noise, petty theft) due to tourism, but this is largely confined to the strip itself. Buyers looking for the lowest crime footprint should focus on the southern half of the city and the suburban interior.

Safest Areas for Families

◆ Great Neck ◆ Red Mill / Landstown ◆ Princess Anne Courthouse ◆ Kempsville ◆ North End

Police & Emergency Services

The Virginia Beach Police Department (VBPD) operates out of multiple precincts across the city and maintains an active community policing presence. Average emergency response times are competitive with peer cities. VBPD has consistently expanded community engagement programs and neighborhood watch infrastructure across residential areas. The city also has its own full-service fire department with numerous strategically placed stations.

Jobs & Economy

Working in Virginia Beach

The local job market, top employers, and what the economy looks like for civilians and transitioning service members alike.

3.2%

Unemployment Rate

$83K

Median Household Income

24 min

Avg. Commute Time

Top Employers

The U.S. military is by far the largest employer in Virginia Beach — NAS Oceana, JEB Little Creek-Fort Story, and the broader Joint Forces Command presence employ tens of thousands of active duty, civilian, and contractor personnel. Outside of defense, major employers include the City of Virginia Beach government, Sentara Healthcare, Virginia Beach City Public Schools, GEICO (major regional hub), Stihl North America, and a growing cluster of technology and defense contractor firms anchored around the Town Center district.

◆ U.S. Military / DoD ◆ Sentara Healthcare ◆ GEICO ◆ Stihl North America ◆ City of Virginia Beach ◆ VBCPS

Dominant Industries

Defense and federal contracting anchor the economy and insulate it from national downturns. Healthcare (Sentara, Chesapeake Regional) is the fastest-growing civilian sector. Tourism generates significant seasonal revenue around the oceanfront. The Town Center district has grown into a legitimate corporate and tech hub, attracting financial services, professional services, and technology firms to purpose-built Class A office space — a meaningful development for remote-to-office and hybrid workers.

For Transitioning Service Members

Virginia Beach may be the single best city in the country for military-to-civilian transition. The defense contractor ecosystem is vast — companies like Booz Allen Hamilton, Leidos, General Dynamics, and SAIC all maintain significant footprints here and actively recruit veterans. Logistics, cybersecurity, IT, and leadership roles translate exceptionally well. The City of Virginia Beach and the Hampton Roads Chamber of Commerce both run veteran hiring initiatives, and the region's veteran-to-veteran professional networks are among the strongest in the Mid-Atlantic.

Commute Note: Virginia Beach is largely a car-dependent city. Most residents commute 15–30 minutes within the city, but travel to Norfolk or Portsmouth can add tunnel time — the Downtown Tunnel (I-264) and Midtown Tunnel (US-58) are morning/evening pinch points. Budget an extra 20–30 minutes if your job is across the water. No major tunnel crosses from Virginia Beach directly; tunnel commutes primarily affect those working in downtown Norfolk or on the Peninsula.

Remote Work & Flexibility

Virginia Beach has excellent broadband infrastructure across most residential neighborhoods, with fiber options through Cox and competing providers. The Town Center area offers coworking spaces including WeWork and independent options. The city is increasingly popular with remote workers — the combination of oceanfront lifestyle, relatively affordable housing vs. Northern Virginia, and solid internet makes it an appealing alternative for DoD civilians and contractors who have location flexibility.

Lifestyle & Amenities

What's it like to live in Virginia Beach?

The restaurants, outdoor life, entertainment, and day-to-day conveniences that define living here.

🍽 Dining & Nightlife

Virginia Beach punches above its weight on food. The oceanfront boardwalk strip has everything from casual seafood to rooftop bars with Atlantic views. Town Center is home to upscale dining, craft breweries (Bold Rock, Smartmouth, Back Bay Brewing), and a real restaurant row feel. Local favorites include The Yard, Cogan's, Rococo, and Tautog's. The catch here is always fresh — this is a working fishing port, and the crab, oysters, and flounder show it.

🌊 Outdoor & Recreation

Virginia Beach is an outdoor lover's paradise. You have 35 miles of Atlantic Ocean coastline, the Chesapeake Bay to the north, and Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge to the south. First Landing State Park — right in the city — offers 19 miles of trails and is consistently one of Virginia's most visited parks. Surfing, kiteboarding, kayaking, fishing, and stand-up paddleboarding are daily realities. The city's greenway trail network makes cycling viable year-round.

🎭 Arts & Entertainment

The Sandler Center for the Performing Arts in Town Center brings Broadway touring productions, orchestral performances, and comedy acts year-round. The Virginia Beach Amphitheater (now Atlantic Union Bank Pavilion) hosts major national acts all summer. The Neptune Festival each September is a signature city event. The Contemporary Art Center of Virginia and the military-themed Hampton Roads Naval Museum add cultural depth beyond the beach.

🛒 Shopping & Errands

Day-to-day errands are easy — the city has multiple Kroger, Harris Teeter, Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, and Lidl locations spread across its neighborhoods. Lynnhaven Mall and Town Center anchor retail. There is no Commissary directly in Virginia Beach city limits, but NAS Oceana and JEB Little Creek both have on-base exchanges and commissaries within a short drive. Overall walkability scores are low (this is a driving city), but most neighborhoods have everything you need within a 5-minute drive.

🏥 Healthcare

Sentara Princess Anne Hospital is the primary civilian hospital in the southern half of the city, with Sentara Leigh and Sentara Norfolk General nearby. Children's Hospital of The King's Daughters (CHKD) in Norfolk is the region's leading pediatric facility. For active duty and their families, Naval Medical Center Portsmouth (NMCP) is the major Military Treatment Facility (MTF) for the region, accessible via tunnel from Virginia Beach.

📍 Getting Around

Virginia Beach is a driving city — there's no light rail within city limits, though the Tide light rail connects Norfolk to the Virginia Beach border at Newtown Road. Hampton Roads Transit (HRT) buses serve major corridors. For the beach lifestyle, a car is essential. The city is well-connected via I-264 (east-west), I-64 (northwest to Norfolk and Hampton), and US-13 (north to the Eastern Shore). Biking is increasingly viable along the oceanfront and greenway network.

Community Feel

The character of Virginia Beach

The things you can't find in a spreadsheet — the vibe, the people, and what makes this city feel like home.

Demographics & Diversity

Virginia Beach is one of the most diverse major cities in Virginia. The population is approximately 64% White, 19% Black, 7% Hispanic, and 6% Asian, with a significant multiracial community reflecting its military demographics. The city leans slightly conservative in local politics but is broadly welcoming — the combination of military culture and beach-town atmosphere creates a live-and-let-live social fabric that newcomers typically find easy to navigate. Military families from every background, region, and country integrate here constantly, making Virginia Beach genuinely accustomed to new arrivals.

Military-Friendliness

Virginia Beach is about as military-friendly as a civilian city gets. Approximately 60,000 active duty personnel live in or around the city, and the veteran population is one of the largest per capita in the nation. Businesses routinely offer military discounts; employers understand deployment cycles; school staff know how to support children through transitions. Military family support networks — both official and informal — are dense and active. If you're PCS'ing here, you will not feel like a stranger.

◆ High Military Population ◆ Strong Veteran Community ◆ Spouse Employment Support

Overall Vibe

Virginia Beach doesn't feel like one city — it feels like several. The oceanfront is lively and tourist-oriented in summer, quieter and genuinely beautiful in the off-season. The suburban interior (Kempsville, Great Neck, Princess Anne) is conventional and family-centered. The Town Center district has a real urban energy with walkable amenities. The agricultural southern corridor around Pungo feels like a different world entirely — farmstands, strawberry picking, and wide open land. Most families land somewhere in the suburban middle and find it comfortable, spacious, and genuinely livable.

HOAs & Neighborhoods

HOAs are common throughout Virginia Beach, particularly in newer planned communities in the Princess Anne and Red Mill/Landstown areas. Fees typically run $100–$350/month and often cover pool access, landscaping of common areas, and exterior maintenance. Older established neighborhoods like those in Bayside, Kempsville, and Great Neck often have no HOA or voluntary civic leagues — offering more freedom but less maintained common infrastructure.

Faith & Worship

Virginia Beach has an unusually rich faith community — it is home to Regent University and its affiliated Christian Broadcasting Network, which has drawn a significant evangelical Christian presence. But the city's diversity means you'll find virtually every denomination and faith tradition represented, from Catholic parishes and mainline Protestant congregations to mosques, Buddhist temples, and Jewish synagogues. Chapel services are available at NAS Oceana and JEB Little Creek for those who prefer on-base worship.

Hampton Roads Specifics

What makes Virginia Beach unique in Hampton Roads

The local knowledge that only comes from living here — the stuff no relocation packet covers.

⚓ Military Installations

NAS Oceana (Naval Air Station) is located within Virginia Beach city limits and is home to East Coast F/A-18 Super Hornet squadrons — you will hear jets, and most residents consider it a badge of honor. JEB Little Creek-Fort Story straddles the Virginia Beach/Norfolk border and is home to Navy Expeditionary Combat Command and Army units. Naval Station Norfolk and Naval Medical Center Portsmouth are accessible via tunnel (20–35 minutes depending on traffic).

🌉 Tunnels & Bridges

Virginia Beach itself has no tunnel crossings within its borders — tunnels become relevant when commuting to Norfolk (Downtown Tunnel / Midtown Tunnel) or crossing to the Peninsula (Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel, HRBT). The HRBT is currently mid-expansion and congestion can be severe in peak hours. If your job is in downtown Norfolk, budget an extra 20–30 minutes in morning rush. Virginia Beach-internal commutes are mostly traffic-light based with no toll burden.

🌊 Flooding & Weather

Flooding is a real and growing issue in Virginia Beach, particularly in low-lying areas near the oceanfront, Shadowlawn, Lynnhaven inlet, and parts of Bayside. Tidal flooding ("sunny day flooding") occurs multiple times a year in the most vulnerable zones. The city has a major $1B+ flood mitigation capital program underway. Before buying, check FEMA flood maps carefully and factor flood insurance costs — which can run $1,000–$4,000+/year in high-risk zones — into your budget. Southern and inland neighborhoods (Princess Anne, Red Mill) have significantly lower flood risk.

📍 Peninsula vs. Southside

Virginia Beach is firmly Southside Hampton Roads — east of Norfolk, bounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and Chesapeake Bay to the north. This positioning means getting to Peninsula cities like Hampton, Newport News, or Yorktown requires crossing the HRBT, which adds significant commute time and toll costs (currently $4–$6 each way for standard vehicles). If you or your spouse will be working on the Peninsula, factor tunnel time into your neighborhood search — some Virginia Beach locations are meaningfully closer to the HRBT than others.

🏖 Beach & Water Access

Virginia Beach is the beach — 35 continuous miles of Atlantic coastline with public access all along it. The resort area boardwalk runs 3 miles and is the heart of summer tourism. The North End is quieter and more residential. Sandbridge is a secluded beach community 15 miles south — locals' favorite escape. The Chesapeake Bay side offers calmer waters great for kayaking and fishing. Boat ramps and marinas at Lynnhaven Inlet give boaters easy Bay access. No other Hampton Roads city offers this level of water lifestyle directly.

🏫 On-Base Resources

NAS Oceana has a Navy Exchange (NEX) and commissary on base, accessible to active duty, retirees, and eligible family members. JEB Little Creek has similar facilities on a larger scale. MWR facilities at both bases include fitness centers, pools, bowling, and recreation programs. The Fleet and Family Support Centers at both installations offer employment assistance, counseling, and transition services. For many needs, the Little Creek Exchange is preferred — it has the largest selection in the immediate Virginia Beach area.

Aerial view of Virginia Beach Town Center

Virginia Beach Town Center — the city's urban core has grown into a genuine mixed-use district with Class A office space, luxury residences, dining, and the Sandler Center for the Performing Arts. The Lake Lawson and Lake Smith natural areas are visible in the background.