What is the Best Neighborhoods USA ranking for Birchwood?
Birchwood is ranked #15 of 19 eligible neighborhoods in Bellingham; #460 of 533 eligible neighborhoods in WA; and #12,119 of 14,967 eligible neighborhoods in the United States.
Neighborhood Profile
Birchwood
Bellingham, WA | Whatcom County
Scored premium profile
Best Neighborhoods USA Index
36.0
Stability and Strength
44.7
Value Opportunity
36.1
Momentum
22.0
Score note: Rankings show denominators so users always see the size of the eligible cohort.
| Context | Value |
|---|---|
| Location | Bellingham, WA |
| County | Whatcom County |
| National rank | #12,119 of 14,967 |
| State rank | #460 of 533 |
| City rank | #15 of 19 |
| County rank | #15 of 19 |
| National percentile | 19.0 |
| National band | LOWER_25_PERCENT |
Neighborhood Expert Opportunity
Become the Neighborhood Expert for this market
Inquire about this marketUnsold commercial placement. No local expert is currently assigned.
Housing and local fundamentals
| Housing and market metrics | Value |
|---|---|
| Current Zillow home value | $643,710 |
| Year-over-year home value change | -2.1% |
| Month-over-month home value change | -0.27% |
| Home value to income ratio | 10.35 |
| Median household income | $62,207 |
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 30.4% |
| Civilian unemployment rate | 2.0% |
| Homeownership rate | 42.7% |
| Housing vacancy rate | 6.2% |
| Rent burden 30% or higher | 59.4% |
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 Birchwood
Is Birchwood one of the best neighborhoods in Bellingham?
Birchwood has a Best Neighborhoods USA Index of 36.0 and a city ranking of #15 of 19 eligible neighborhoods in Bellingham.
How much are homes worth in Birchwood?
The current Zillow Home Value Index for Birchwood is approximately $643,710.
Are home values rising or falling in Birchwood?
Zillow neighborhood values changed -2.1% year over year and -0.27% month over month.
What is the Neighborhood Momentum Score for Birchwood?
Birchwood has a Neighborhood Momentum Score of 22.0. Momentum is 70% year-over-year and 30% month-over-month Zillow housing change.
What is the median household income in Birchwood?
The NDS-derived neighborhood median household income is approximately $62,207.
How affordable is Birchwood relative to household income?
The current Zillow home-value-to-household-income ratio is 10.35. Price-to-income affordability is a major Value Opportunity input.
Is Birchwood primarily homeowners or renters?
The NDS-derived homeownership rate is approximately 42.7%.
What is the unemployment rate in Birchwood?
The NDS-derived civilian unemployment rate is approximately 2.0%.
How educated are residents of Birchwood?
Approximately 30.4% of residents age 25 and older are estimated to have a bachelor's degree or higher.
What share of renters in Birchwood face high rent burden?
Approximately 59.4% 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 Birchwood?
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 applications77
Estimated originations53
Home-purchase applications35
Origination rate67.8%
Home-purchase share45.0%
Average application loan$306,046
Total application loan amount$23,718,467
National application rank#5,369 of 14,874 rankable neighborhoods
Geometry coverage100.0%
Recent trend: Applications 10.5% YoY; originations 18.7% 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.