Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Buena Vista grades B− overall, 177th among Virginia's 249 graded towns, with clear strengths and some subjects that lag. It reports less crime per resident than 81% of U.S. towns and it is more walkable than 91% of U.S. towns. On the other side, FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 76% of U.S. communities, with inland flooding at the top. Buena Vista’s trail density is 1.8 miles per square mile, above both the Virginia town median (0.7) and the median of U.S. towns (0.4). Buena Vista is home to Southern Virginia University.
Where Buena Vista beats most towns.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Virginia), ordered by how far Buena Vista is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 1,044 in 1890, 6,641 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1946 and 7 maps from 1939 on.
9 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Buena Vista. Close and well known come first.
2 mi ParkwayBlue Ridge Parkway16.5M visitors a year
34 mi National ParkShenandoah National Park1.7M visitors a year
38 mi National Historical ParkAppomattox Court House National Historical Park77K visitors a year
29 mi LandmarkNational D-Day Memorial
32 mi MuseumFrontier Culture Museum of Virginia26 mi Ski areaWintergreen Ski Resort21 runs · 990 ft verticalBlue Ridge Parkway: Ken Thomas, Public domain · Shenandoah National Park: Image copyright 2005 by user G. Edward Johnson (user Lorax) and released under t, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Appomattox Court House National Historical Park: Doug Coldwell, CC BY-SA 3.0 · National D-Day Memorial: RebelAt at English Wikipedia, Public domain · Frontier Culture Museum of Virginia: Woody Hibbard from Texas, USA, CC BY 2.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Buena Vista, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Sep 30, 2026.
Ordered by what stands out in Buena Vista.
Buena Vista fares better on crime within Virginia than nationally and is healthier than towns with similar incomes, but it carries more natural-hazard risk than most of Virginia (mostly inland flooding).
In the comparison, Buena Vista comes above both Virginia’s towns (4.6%) and U.S. towns (4.3%). 12 miles of trail in 3 parks and preserves. The biggest place to walk is George Washington National Forest, 606 acres with 1.1 miles of trail.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Glen Maury Park | 5.7 mi | 269 |
| 2. George Washington National Forest | 1.1 mi | 606 |
| 3. Laurel Park | 0.3 mi | 11 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its public schools are run by the Buena Vista City Public Schools. Three of its 5 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Parry McCluer High, with 315 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Enderly Heights ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades 2–5 | Grades 2–5 | 268 | C+ |
| Parry McCluer HighLargest public high schoolGrades 8–12 | Grades 8–12 | 315 | C |
| Parry McCluer MiddleTop results in townGrades 6–7 | Grades 6–7 | 126 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within VA on state tests and graduation
The typical Buena Vista home is worth about $202,000, up 3.2% in a year, 51% below the Virginia typical home. The median rent in Buena Vista is $1,112 a month.
| Buena Vista | Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 57% | 68% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,112 a month | $1,764 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
At 7.8 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports less crime than 95% of Virginia’s graded towns.
Buena Vista’s property crime rate is 6.1 per 1,000 residents.
| Buena Vista | Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 6.1 per 1,000 residents | 14.6 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 1.1 per 1,000 residents | 2.3 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Against the 8,273 U.S. towns with household incomes like Buena Vista’s, it is less healthy than 55%, so its C isn’t only a matter of income.
27% of Buena Vista adults have been diagnosed with depression. Buena Vista beats the Virginia average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 14. 13% of Buena Vista adults have diabetes.
| Buena Vista | Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 16% | 17% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 22% | 23% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 12% | 14% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 12% | 14% |
| What stands out | Buena Vista | VA |
|---|---|---|
| More adults with COPD | 9.1% | 6.2% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 16.2% | 11.1% |
| More smokers | 15.8% | 12.2% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 98% of Virginia towns, with expected losses of about $356 per resident a year; that rating is what its C− for hazard risk is built on. 208 flood insurance claims have been filed here, and 33 properties have flooded more than once.
Since 1978, 208 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Buena Vista. Among 253 Virginia towns, just 5 have a higher FEMA risk score than Buena Vista.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Buena Vista has chilly winters and warm summers. July afternoons reach 87°, January nights drop to 26° and about 11 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The average commute for its 2,814 working residents takes 17.4 minutes, against 27.3 across Virginia.
About one in 5 of Buena Vista’s working residents works in town. 19% of residents live below the poverty line in Buena Vista. Jobs based in Buena Vista fell to 2,385 in 2023, 204 fewer than in 2013.
| Buena Vista | Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 17 minutes | 27 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 19% | 7.7% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 22% | 4.8% | 8% |
| Median household income | $58,000 | $102,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
3 within 15 miles of the center of Buena Vista
About 13 of every 100 Buena Vista residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across Virginia.
9 places in Buena Vista on the National Register of Historic Places.
Independent city in Virginia, United States
Buena Vista ( BEW-nə VIST-ə), called "BV" by locals, is an independent city located in the Blue Ridge Mountains region of Virginia in the United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 6,641. The Bureau of Economic Analysis combines the independent cities of Buena Vista and Lexington, along with surrounding Rockbridge County, for statistical purposes. The city is located approximately 39 miles northwest of Lynchburg and 56 miles northeast of Roanoke.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Buena Vista grades B− overall, better than 47% of U.S. towns and #177 of 249 in Virginia. It grades C for health, A− for safety and B− for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a C−.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C+.
.jpg){kind=link}