What is the Best Neighborhoods USA ranking for Columbia Heights?
Columbia Heights is ranked #40 of 113 eligible neighborhoods in Washington; #40 of 113 eligible neighborhoods in DC; and #6,129 of 14,967 eligible neighborhoods in the United States.
Neighborhood Profile
Columbia Heights
Washington, DC | District of Columbia
Scored premium profile
Best Neighborhoods USA Index
54.0
Stability and Strength
61.5
Value Opportunity
56.1
Momentum
38.9
Score note: Rankings show denominators so users always see the size of the eligible cohort.
| Context | Value |
|---|---|
| Location | Washington, DC |
| County | District of Columbia |
| National rank | #6,129 of 14,967 |
| State rank | #40 of 113 |
| City rank | #40 of 113 |
| County rank | #40 of 113 |
| National percentile | 59.1 |
| National band | MIDDLE_50_PERCENT |
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Housing and local fundamentals
| Housing and market metrics | Value |
|---|---|
| Current Zillow home value | $769,966 |
| Year-over-year home value change | -1.3% |
| Month-over-month home value change | 0.14% |
| Home value to income ratio | 6.16 |
| Median household income | $125,047 |
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 66.8% |
| Civilian unemployment rate | 4.9% |
| Homeownership rate | 33.6% |
| Housing vacancy rate | 8.2% |
| Rent burden 30% or higher | 39.2% |
How to read this profile
- Ranks are always shown with denominators.
- Momentum reflects both year-over-year and month-over-month housing change.
- Stability and Strength and Value Opportunity are governed composite scores.
- Identity composition is descriptive intelligence and is not a scoring component.
Questions and Answers
Questions About Living in Columbia Heights
Is Columbia Heights one of the best neighborhoods in Washington?
Columbia Heights has a Best Neighborhoods USA Index of 54.0 and a city ranking of #40 of 113 eligible neighborhoods in Washington.
How much are homes worth in Columbia Heights?
The current Zillow Home Value Index for Columbia Heights is approximately $769,966.
Are home values rising or falling in Columbia Heights?
Zillow neighborhood values changed -1.3% year over year and 0.14% month over month.
What is the Neighborhood Momentum Score for Columbia Heights?
Columbia Heights has a Neighborhood Momentum Score of 38.9. Momentum is 70% year-over-year and 30% month-over-month Zillow housing change.
What is the median household income in Columbia Heights?
The NDS-derived neighborhood median household income is approximately $125,047.
How affordable is Columbia Heights relative to household income?
The current Zillow home-value-to-household-income ratio is 6.16. Price-to-income affordability is a major Value Opportunity input.
Is Columbia Heights primarily homeowners or renters?
The NDS-derived homeownership rate is approximately 33.6%.
What is the unemployment rate in Columbia Heights?
The NDS-derived civilian unemployment rate is approximately 4.9%.
How educated are residents of Columbia Heights?
Approximately 66.8% of residents age 25 and older are estimated to have a bachelor's degree or higher.
What share of renters in Columbia Heights face high rent burden?
Approximately 39.2% of the applicable renter-household universe is estimated to spend 30% or more of household income on gross rent.
How does Best Neighborhoods USA score Columbia Heights?
The overall index combines 40% Stability and Strength, 35% Value Opportunity, and 25% Momentum. Race, ethnicity, and identity composition are not scoring components.
Governed ranking context
How this neighborhood ranks
HMDA Mortgage Intelligence
Neighborhood Mortgage Market
Modeled neighborhood-level mortgage activity allocated from governed HMDA tract data using Zillow neighborhood geometry. These neighborhood values are nonadditive and do not enter the Best Neighborhoods USA Index.
Activity year2024
Estimated applications542
Estimated originations321
Home-purchase applications335
Origination rate59.3%
Home-purchase share61.8%
Average application loan$721,994
Total application loan amount$391,285,439
National application rank#489 of 14,874 rankable neighborhoods
Geometry coverage100.0%
Recent trend: Applications -6.3% YoY; originations -8.1% YoY
Mortgage methodology
HMDA is natively reported at tract and other lender-reporting geographies, not Zillow neighborhood or ZIP geography. This module uses the certified NDS HMDA-to-Zillow tract-vintage crosswalk and area-weighted allocation. Rankings require governed geometry coverage. Applicant demographics are excluded. Neighborhood values may overlap and must not be summed to reconstruct ZIP or national totals.