CitytisticsShortlist

Cost of living, pay and housing

37.14° N · 80.54° W · GEOID 5126736

Fairlawn

Pulaski County, Virginia · part of the Blacksburg, VA metro

Limited data population under 5,000

VirginiaFairlawn, VAFairlawnFairlawn

The short answer

Fairlawn is home to 2,488 people. Median household income is $66,918 a year and median rent is $1,621 a month, 29.1% of income (a ratio of two medians, not any one household's burden). Rent pressure is moderate. The median home is valued at $243,500, about 3.6x annual median household income.

Median gross rent
$1,621
19% above the median place
Median household income
$66,918
17% below the median place
Median home value
$243,500
24% below the median place
Unemployment
3.2%
34% below the median place

Compared with the median of the 6,645 places we track. The bundle was checked 2026-11-14; each measure may refer to an older release.

What stands out about Fairlawn

  • Between the 2019 and 2024 surveys, rent rose 17.3% a year while household income rose 3.3%, so rent outran pay by more than in 99% of the 2,476 places under 10,000 people we track. It is the highest of 195 Virginia places.
  • The median resident is 55.1 years old, older than in 96% of places its size. It is the highest of 195 Virginia places.
  • Owning with a mortgage costs about $63 a month less than the median rent, which is rarer than in 95% of places its size.
  • The median rent takes 29.1% of the median household's income, a bigger share than in 93% of places its size.
  • Households average 2.00 people, smaller than in 93% of places its size.
01

Moving to Fairlawn

Pulaski County gains about 2.0 residents per 1,000 a year to moves between counties.

Moved in1,336
Moved out1,286
Net+50

Where people come from and where they go, top counties

Radford city, VA210260−50
Giles County, VA6852+16

Within Virginia, other states or abroad

Arrivals
Leavers
Within VirginiaOther states

Income per tax return

Arrivals$55K
Leavers$54K

People on tax returns who moved between counties, from IRS migration data, 2022 to 2023. Figures are for all of Pulaski County; flows under 20 returns are not published.

Who moves here
15.1% of residents arrived from another county in the past year, 1.3% from another state.
Who arrives and who leaves
Households moving into Pulaski County report $55,300 a year in income on average; those leaving, $53,900.
Income you would need
$64,800 a year to rent the median home at the 30% line. From your city
Rent or buy
Median rent is $1,621 a month; owners with a mortgage pay $1,558 a month including taxes and insurance, on a median home of $243,500.
Getting to work
22 minutes each way on average; 6.2% work from home.
If it is close but not quite
Seminole, FL matches it on character. Compare the two
Moved here in the past year1
15.1%
163% above the median place
Income of households moving out6
$53,870
23% below the median place
Income of households moving in6
$55,326
22% below the median place
All 5 moving measures
MeasureFairlawnAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Moved here in the past year115.1%163% above
Moved from another state1County figure1.3%34% below
Net movers per 1,000 people6County figure2.0above (median -0.6)
Income of households moving in6County figure$55,32622% below
Income of households moving out6County figure$53,87023% below
02

What it costs to live here

Rent to income is 29.1%, 43% above the median place.

Fairlawn29.1%
Typical place20.4%

Share of the median household income that goes to the median rent. Above 30% is the usual stress line.

Income needed to rent
$64,840
a year, at the 30% line
Rent to income
29.1%
43% above the median place
Home price to income
3.6x
4% below the median place

Could you afford it?

The median rent would take
29%
just under the 30% line
Left after rent, in US prices
$49,300
a year
Vs the typical household here
Same
as the median household

Uses the median rent in Fairlawn, $1,621 a month, and local prices for everything else (96.5 against a US average of 100). It runs in your browser and stores nothing.

Like Fairlawn, but easier on the budget

Close matches on income, rent, home value, education and age, where rent takes a clearly smaller share of income.

PlaceRent to incomeMore left a year
Ventnor City, NJ24.8% vs 29.1%$3,000Compare
Ocean City, MD20.9% vs 29.1%n/aCompare
Cold Spring, KY19.1% vs 29.1%$13,400Compare

Moving from somewhere else? Work out the salary you would need in Fairlawn.

Sponsored · exampleMoving to Fairlawn? Compare quotes from licensed movers. No partner is signed yet. Sponsored offers are always labelled and never change the data.
Property tax paid (median)1
$1,329
59% below the median place
Renters paying 30%+1
62.3%
23% above the median place
Property tax rate1
0.6%
40% below the median place
All 15 cost and housing measures
MeasureFairlawnAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Median gross rent1$1,62119% above
Rent to income129.1%43% above
Property tax rate10.6%40% below
Home price to income13.6x4% below
Prices vs US average2Metro figure92.78% below
Fair market rent, 2 bedrooms3County figure$95241% below
Property tax paid (median)1$1,32959% below
Median home value1$243,50024% below
Home prices, 1-year change4County figure7.0%120% above
Home prices, 5-year change4County figure56.8%10% above
Homeownership183.6%26% above
Renters paying 30%+162.3%23% above
Owner costs with a mortgage1$1,55817% below
Vacant homes1County figure15.2%116% above
Median year built119770% below
03

Work and pay

Commutes by transit is 0.0%, below the median place (median 0.8%).

Commutes by transit1
0.0%
below the median place (median 0.8%)
Mean commute1
22 min
14% below the median place
Median household income1
$66,918
17% below the median place
All 10 work and pay measures
MeasureFairlawnAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Median household income1$66,91817% below
Income per person1$43,6939% above
Unemployment1County figure3.2%34% below
Average annual pay5County figure$54,74117% below
Pay growth, 1 year5County figure3.8%3% above
Jobs5County figure13,75391% below
Poverty rate1County figure14.4%33% above
Mean commute122 min14% below
Works from home1County figure6.2%50% below
Commutes by transit10.0%below (median 0.8%)
04

Who lives here

Median age is 55.1, 41% above the median place.

Median age1
55.1
41% above the median place
Household size1
2.0
20% below the median place
High school or higher1
95.5%
3% above the median place
All 8 people measures
MeasureFairlawnAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Population12,4886646th largest
Median age155.141% above
Bachelor's or higher142.2%32% above
High school or higher195.5%3% above
Household size12.020% below
Born abroad1County figure1.3%85% below
No health insurance1County figure5.5%14% below
Homes with broadband191.2%1% below
05

Life in Fairlawn

24 sites are on the National Register of Historic Places.

Out the door, against the typical place

Parks per 10k residents0.0 −100%
Playgrounds per 10k0.0 −100%
Grocery stores per 10k4.0 +90%
Restaurants, cafes and bars per 10k8.0 −28%
Libraries per 10k0.0 −100%
Named paths and bike trails0 km −100%
Bus and rail stops per sq mi0.0 −100%

Mapped by volunteers in OpenStreetMap inside the city limits (Census boundaries), so coverage is fuller in some places than others. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.

Businesses per 10,000 residents (county figures)

Restaurants and bars16.6 −20%
Shops30.6 +1%
Arts, recreation and fitness3.0 −27%
Doctors' offices and clinics16.0 −21%
Child care centers1.5 −35%

Counts businesses with paid staff, so small owner-run shops are not included.

Public schools10
1
89% below the median place
Public school students10
380
92% below the median place
Students per teacher10
12.7
18% below the median place
All 16 schools and local life measures
MeasureFairlawnAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Public schools10189% below
Public school students1038092% below
Students per teacher1012.718% below
Restaurants and bars per 10k7County figure16.620% below
Shops per 10k7County figure30.61% above
Arts, recreation and fitness per 10k7County figure3.027% below
Doctors' offices and clinics per 10k7County figure16.021% below
Child care centers per 10k7County figure1.535% below
Parks per 10k80.0below (median 10.2)
Playgrounds per 10k80.0below (median 9.4)
Grocery stores per 10k84.090% above
Restaurants, cafes and bars per 10k88.028% below
Libraries per 10k80.0below (median 0.9)
Named paths and bike trails80.0below (median 2.0)
Transit stops per sq mi80.0below (median 0.2)
National Register listings9County figure2485% above
06

Safety, weather and risk

Heat wave risk is 0.0, below the median place (median 90.1).

No crime figure yet. Either the city police department did not report to the FBI for the latest year, or our monthly fetch has not reached Fairlawn. Larger places are fetched first.

Heat wave risk12
0.0
below the median place (median 90.1)
Good air days13
94.4%
38% above the median place
Natural hazard risk12
45.9
50% below the median place
All 11 weather and risk measures
MeasureFairlawnAmong 6,645 placesVs median
July average high11County figure84°F4% below
January average low11County figure24°F4% below
Average temperature11County figure53°F3% below
Annual precipitation11County figure41.9 in4% below
Natural hazard risk12County figure45.950% below
Hurricane risk12County figure51.926% below
Tornado risk12County figure17.778% below
Wildfire risk12County figure25.958% below
Heat wave risk12County figure0.0below (median 90.1)
Median air quality index13Metro figure3714% below
Good air days13Metro figure94.4%38% above
08

Fairlawn in 2030: where the trends point

If recent trends hold, the median rent will take about 31% of the median income in 2030, up from 29% now.

Citytistics projections to 2030: each figure's own trend, blended with the typical trend across the places we rate, eased toward long-run US growth and carried forward from the latest release. The range is where 80% of places landed when we tested the same method on past releases.

MeasureLatest2030 projectionLikely rangeAvg. per year
Median rent$1,621/mo (2024)$2,190/mo$1,800 to $2,670/mo+5.1%
Median household income$66,918 (2024)$84,500$71,500 to $100,000+4.0%
Median home value$243,500 (2024)$346,000$251,000 to $476,000+6.0%

The median home would be worth 4.1 years of the median income in 2030, against 3.6 now.

A projection of recent trends, not a prediction of the economy or advice to buy or sell. How we project.

09

Places like Fairlawn

The closest matches on income, rent, home value, education and age, and the places nearby.

PlaceRentIncome
Seminole, FL$1,708$75,774Compare
Ventnor City, NJ$1,417$68,671Compare
Ormond Beach, FL$1,411$69,177Compare
Villas, FL$1,695$58,413Compare
Villas, FLOrmond Beach, FLVentnor City, NJSeminole, FLFairlawn, VAFairlawnSeminoleVentnor CityOrmond BeachVillasFairlawnSeminoleVentnor CityOrmond BeachVillas

Common questions

Is Fairlawn a good place to live?

It depends on what you need, so here is what the numbers say. Between the 2019 and 2024 surveys, rent rose 17.3% a year while household income rose 3.3%, so rent outran pay by more than in 99% of the 2,476 places under 10,000 people we track. It is the highest of 195 Virginia places. The median resident is 55.1 years old, older than in 96% of places its size. It is the highest of 195 Virginia places. On cost, space and class size it scores 42 out of 100 for families. See how it ranks with your own weights.

Is Fairlawn expensive to live in?

The median rent takes 29.1% of the median household income, against 20.4% in the typical place we track. Housing is a heavier load here than usual. The median home is valued at $243,500.

What salary do you need to live in Fairlawn?

To rent the median home without spending more than 30% of income on rent, a household needs about $64,840 a year. Work it out from your current city.

What places are similar to Fairlawn?

On income, rent, home value, education and age, the closest matches are Seminole, FL, Ventnor City, NJ, Ormond Beach, FL and Villas, FL.

Sources and methods

The small numbers beside each measure point here. Every dataset is public; links go to the publisher.

  1. American Community Survey 5-year estimates · US Census Bureau · 2020 to 2024 estimatesTables B01002, B01003, B05002, B07003, B08013, B08301, B15003, B17001, B19013, B19301, B23025, B25002, B25003, B25010, B25035, B25064, B25070, B25077, B25088, B25103, B28002, S2701
  2. Regional Price Parities · US Bureau of Economic Analysis · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14
  3. Fair Market Rents · US Department of Housing and Urban Development · Fiscal year 2027
  4. House Price Index · Federal Housing Finance Agency · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14
  5. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages · US Bureau of Labor Statistics · 2025 annual averages
  6. SOI Tax Stats, county-to-county migration · Internal Revenue Service · Tax years 2022 to 2023Counts tax returns and the people on them; flows under 20 returns are suppressed.
  7. County Business Patterns · US Census Bureau · 2023 data
  8. OpenStreetMap · © OpenStreetMap contributors, available under the Open Database License (ODbL) · Map data as of 2026-11
  9. National Register of Historic Places · National Park Service · Listings through 2026-05-22
  10. Common Core of Data · National Center for Education Statistics · 2024 release
  11. 1991-2020 climate normals · NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information · Series updated 2026-11-05Averages for 1991 to 2020 computed from NOAA's county climate series (nClimDiv).nClimDiv county series
  12. National Risk Index · Federal Emergency Management Agency · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14NRI data and maps
  13. Air Quality System, annual AQI by county · US Environmental Protection Agency · 2025 dataAirData download files

Derived by Citytistics from the tables above: rent to income (B25064, B19013); property tax rate (B25103, B25077); home price to income (B25077, B19013).

What stands out compares Fairlawn with places of a similar size, using only figures measured for Fairlawn itself; county and metro figures never count. Survey figures are estimates with margins of error. Formulas and definitions: methodology. API: /api/v1/places/fairlawn-virginia

Citytistics. “Fairlawn, Virginia.” Data as of 2026-11-14. https://www.citytistics.com/city/fairlawn-virginia/

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.