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Big city living isn't for everyone--but at the same time, urban areas certainly have their perks.
There's the culture, the food, the arts, the food, the energy, and you know, the food. But there are drawbacks. There's traffic, expensive parking, expensive housing--pretty much, expensive everything, depending on which big city you're looking at.
But that's where the suburbs come in--they have all of the benefits of being near big cities, without actually having to be big cities.
Of course, not all suburbs of Fayetteville are created equally, which is precisely why we set out to find the best ones. So without further ado...
Here are the 10 best suburbs to live around Fayetteville for 2022:
What's the best suburb of Fayetteville? Whispering Pines ranks as the best suburb of Fayetteville for 2022 based on the most recent Census and FBI data. If you happen to be a resident of Whispering Pines, you're probably not too surprised to find it on the top our list.
We'll tell you what makes each of these 10 Fayetteville 'burbs better than the rest--but first, a bit about our methodology.
Note: This result may differ from our state wide data as we did not include commute times and crime for this analysis to allow for a larger selection of suburbs.
Feel free to check out some more reading about North Carolina:
The 10 Best Fayetteville Suburbs To Live For 2022
Whispering Pines is always mentioned as one of the best suburbs in the Fayetteville area. We'll tell you the good about "Awesome Whispering Pines."
Everyone here is rich; families average $88,029 a year, which is the highest in the Fayetteville region. And only 0.99% are out of work. Homes average more than $344,600 each.
/10
Population: 3,357
Rank Last Year: 2 (Up 1)
Median Income: $88,029
Unemployment Rate: 1.0%
Poverty Rate: 4.9%
More on Whispering Pines: Real Estate | Data
Pinehurst is the second best 'burb we looked at near Fayetteville for 2022.
It ranks 2nd for incomes in the area and only 2.26% of residents lack insurance, good for 2nd best.
/10
Population: 16,382
Rank Last Year: 1 (Down 1)
Median Income: $87,609
Unemployment Rate: 4.0%
Poverty Rate: 4.2%
More on Pinehurst: Real Estate | Data | Photos
Here in Aberdeen, it's really safe, and residents are just about as rich as you'll see in the Fayetteville metro area.
The bad side? Schools are more crowded, and the cost of living puts a large part of the city out of reach for most families.
But price is based on demand and a lot of people want to live in Aberdeen.
/10
Population: 7,862
Rank Last Year: 3 (No Change)
Median Income: $58,770
Unemployment Rate: 4.1%
Poverty Rate: 7.0%
More on Aberdeen: Real Estate | Data | Photos
Hope Mills ranks as the 4th best suburb of Fayetteville for 2022.
You won't find many better places to raise your kids in the region than in Hope Mills and the schools are some of the best around.
/10
Population: 15,972
Rank Last Year: 4 (No Change)
Median Income: $47,730
Unemployment Rate: 6.7%
Poverty Rate: 15.8%
More on Hope Mills: Real Estate | Data | Photos
Coming in as the fifth best is Eastover.
Eastover gets kudos for having the 4th most expensive homes in the Fayetteville area, where houses sell for an average of $222,400. However, the cost of living here is among the highest in the area.
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Population: 3,740
Rank Last Year: 6 (Up 1)
Median Income: $55,174
Unemployment Rate: 6.5%
Poverty Rate: 12.1%
More on Eastover: Real Estate | Data | Photos
Southern Pines is proud of its 6th place finish on this list. And here's why.
Most residents have great jobs and the unemployment rate sits at 8.06% which is 14th best in the area.
According to online reports, Southern Pines is quickly becoming one of the more affluent suburbs in the Fayetteville area, meaning you need to get in soon.
/10
Population: 14,347
Rank Last Year: 7 (Up 1)
Median Income: $70,549
Unemployment Rate: 8.1%
Poverty Rate: 13.0%
More on Southern Pines: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The 7th best suburb on our list goes to Carthage.
Carthage schools are some of the best in the region, and crime is really low. The cost of living makes it a lot more desirable for many families, especially first-time home buyers.
And, it's only 29.3 miles to downtown, which is a good thing.
/10
Population: 2,518
Rank Last Year: 5 (Down 2)
Median Income: $41,731
Unemployment Rate: 2.0%
Poverty Rate: 10.5%
More on Carthage: Real Estate | Data | Photos
Lillington is growing quickly, and for a good reason. Crime is far below average, and most residents are gainfully employed. Even the cost of living is reasonable.
A solid 14.7% of people lack insurance, good for 12th in the area.
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Population: 3,605
Rank Last Year: 8 (No Change)
Median Income: $47,277
Unemployment Rate: 1.5%
Poverty Rate: 11.1%
More on Lillington: Real Estate | Data | Photos
Is 'Everything Better In Sanford?'
Almost.
It placed 9th on our list thanks to the fact that it's really expensive to live here, but the schools are great, so you get what you pay for in that regard.
/10
Population: 29,758
Rank Last Year: 9 (No Change)
Median Income: $47,017
Unemployment Rate: 6.0%
Poverty Rate: 20.5%
More on Sanford: Real Estate | Data | Photos
And rounding out the top ten for 2022 is Erwin.
This city is far above average in every category, and the best part? It's far more affordable than the other cities listed above. So, you get a big bang for your buck here.
/10
Population: 5,104
Rank Last Year: 10 (No Change)
Median Income: $41,702
Unemployment Rate: 2.0%
Poverty Rate: 14.6%
More on Erwin: Real Estate | Data | Photos
Methodology: How We Determined The Best Suburbs Around Fayetteville for 2022
Figuring out the best suburbs around Fayetteville was pretty simple; we just needed to list several things that people like, and then find out which cities have the most of those things.
We threw a lot of criteria at this one in order to get the best, most complete results possible:
- Low unemployment rate
- High Median household incomes
- Population density (lots of things to do)
- High home values
- A lot of college educated people
- Low poverty
- High rate of insured families
Then we used the newest American Community Survey data for 2016-2020 to research each suburb.
FYI: We defined a suburb as being within 30 miles of Fayetteville.
Additionally, we limited the analysis to places that have over 2,000 people. This left us with a grand total of 16 suburbs to evaluate around Fayetteville.
We ranked each place with scores from 1 to 16 in each category, where 1 was the "best.
Next, we averaged the rankings for each place to create a quality of life index.
And finally, we crowned the city with the best quality of life index the "Best Suburb near Fayetteville." We're lookin' at you, Whispering Pines. You can download the data here.
Read on below to learn more about what it's like to live in the best of the best. Or skip to the end to see the list of all the suburbs ranked from best to worst.
Summary: Welcome to the Best Fayetteville 'Burbs of 2022
We said it once and we'll say it again--life in the big city isn't for everyone. At least not all the time.
So if you're hankering for some of the amenities of a larger city like Fayetteville, but don't want to deal with the drawbacks, one of these suburbs might just be for you.
For more North Carolina reading, check out:
- Best Places To Retire In North Carolina
- Richest Cities In North Carolina
- Safest Cities in North Carolina
Detailed List Of The Best Fayetteville Suburbs
| Rank | City | Population |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Whispering Pines, NC | 3,357 |
| 2 | Pinehurst, NC | 16,382 |
| 3 | Aberdeen, NC | 7,862 |
| 4 | Hope Mills, NC | 15,972 |
| 5 | Eastover, NC | 3,740 |
| 6 | Southern Pines, NC | 14,347 |
| 7 | Carthage, NC | 2,518 |
| 8 | Lillington, NC | 3,605 |
| 9 | Sanford, NC | 29,758 |
| 10 | Erwin, NC | 5,104 |
| 11 | Coats, NC | 2,463 |
| 12 | Dunn, NC | 9,738 |
| 13 | Raeford, NC | 4,943 |
| 14 | Spring Lake, NC | 12,093 |
| 15 | St. Pauls, NC | 2,114 |
| 16 | Red Springs, NC | 3,291 |
