2023 Best Suburbs to Buy a House in Virginia

• Suburb of Richmond, VA

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  Rating 3.82 out of 5  38 reviews

Current Resident: Right outside of Richmond, incredible public school system as well as multiple private school options, very safe, good place to raise a family, more expensive housing options, mostly Caucasian, about 20 minutes from downtown Richmond and 5-7 minutes from Innsbrook.... Read 38 reviews

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• Population 12,143

• Suburb of Richmond, VA

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  Rating 3.94 out of 5  48 reviews

Nearby Resident: 23120 is really Moseley not Woodlake. It is a couple of miles west of Woodlake. It is a HUGE growth area. Mostly residential and retail but more and more businesses are coming to the area. The quality of life is fantastic. However, employment centers are mainly 30 miles away but with the onset of COVID-19, most employers have their employees working from home so my commute has gone from 26.9 miles and 45 minutes to 0 miles and 0 minutes. This is THE area for families. Fantastic public schools. Everything you could ever want to shop within a 15 minute drive. Lots of restaurants. Nightlife or bar life is very limited but if you are raising a family, why would you care about that? Most of us call this area Moseley or the greater Winterpock area. Brandermill and Woodlake made the area famous over three decades ago but the growth area is west of those two developments. You can find homes from $400,000 to $1,000,000 in the area.... Read 48 reviews

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• Population 7,398

• Suburb in Virginia

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  Rating 3 out of 5  1 review

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• Population 10,460

• Suburb in Virginia

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  Rating 4.27 out of 5  22 reviews

Current Resident: I Have lived in Stone Ridge for the past 3 years and it's a great place to raise a family and live without worry. There is a lot of growth and progress and many professionals that love living in the area. The trip to DC is not too bad as you have the Dulles toll road, routes 50 and 66. There is a bit of traffic but it's worth the travel. Stone Ridge safety is amazing and very happy to live here!... Read 22 reviews

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• Population 15,776

• Suburb in Virginia

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  Rating 4.39 out of 5  23 reviews

Current Resident: I love living in Brambleton. It's a beautiful community decorated with landscape, but also has a modern hint to it. The houses range in vast building styles. There's a town center filled with coffee shops, restaurants, and even dentist offices. The people in Brambleton look out for each other, and are friendly and connected. There are multiple events, such as the fall fest, and farmer's market. The town center even decorates for Hanukkah and Christmas. Something I would like to change is bringing back the dog park and community garden. A couple of years ago, it used to be there, but people didn't use it a lot. Now, the land is being used for more houses. I would like to designate another area for dogs and a community garden, because I think it ties people of all ages together. Also, Brambleton's population has increased significantly, meaning more people will visit those areas if they were there. Overall, I love living in Brambleton with my family and friends.... Read 23 reviews

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• Population 21,986

• Suburb in Virginia

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  Rating 3.6 out of 5  5 reviews

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• Population 1,770

• Suburb in Virginia

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  Rating 4.02 out of 5  55 reviews

Former Resident: Overall, Cave Spring is a great are within Roanoke, VA to live. The community is close-knit and overall, safety seems to be a priority for most. The schools in this area tend to be nationally recognized, especially for music education.... Read 55 reviews

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• Population 25,248

• Suburb in Virginia

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  Rating 4.43 out of 5  21 reviews

Current Resident: Excellent schools and friendly neighbors. The area is a great place for kids to grow up in. There are miles and miles of walking trails that connect the community with each other.... Read 21 reviews

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• Population 14,835

• Suburb of Richmond, VA

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  Rating 3.88 out of 5  16 reviews

Current Resident: Brandermill is Beautiful! I've lived here for 2 decades and can say there's no other place comparable to this HOA. To name a few, Brandermill has 3 pools, two overlook the Swift Creek Reservoir, 6 parks, 15 miles of walking paths, boating center, boat landings, docks, pavillions, gazebos, marina, storage center, community garden, easy access to restaurants, shopping and highways and top rated schools. Many events are planned by the BCA, Fall Festival, Spring Clean Up, Winter Festival, July 4th parade and Fireworks display and much more. The BCA has monthly board meetings that are open to all residents along with committee volunteer meetings throughout the month to help with communication and the needs of residents. I highly recommend Brandermill as a place to live!... Read 16 reviews

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• Population 13,745

• Suburb in Virginia

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  Rating 3.77 out of 5  13 reviews

Current Resident: I've lived here my whole life. It is a very safe area. Also very quiet. You are far away from some activities but it isn't unreasonable.... Read 13 reviews

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• Population 3,078

• Suburb in Virginia

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  Rating 4.23 out of 5  74 reviews

Former Resident: We lived in South Riding for a time and if we ever moved back to the metro DC area we would choose South Riding again. Excellent pediatrician, close by to two hospitals and many other medical centers, great playgrounds scattered around, half of the properties on lining the South Riding golf course, two excellent daycares (Goddard and Primrose), Food Lion, Harris Teeter, and Giant to grocery shop at, excellent library close by in Stone Ridge, and good HOA. My only complaint is many of the properties are the biggest house you can get with almost no yard. Extremely diverse neighborhood, even within our little townhouse square, all neighbors were very friendly. The housing cost of this area is going up. We cannot afford the townhouse we sold a few years ago!... Read 74 reviews

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• Population 33,828

• Suburb in Virginia

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  Rating 3.86 out of 5  21 reviews

Niche User: I grew up in this area, and have watched it developed from quiet, rural suburbia to progressively up-and-coming town. It'll be interesting to see how the Ashburn, Virginia, area ends up in 3-5 years.... Read 21 reviews

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• Population 9,589

• Suburb of Richmond, VA

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  Rating 4.06 out of 5  50 reviews

Former Resident: Short Pump was a great place to grow up that was family friendly, safe, and had great public schools. The schools were all walkable from most of the neighborhoods and there were grocery stores and the neighborhoods had lots of families.... Read 50 reviews

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• Population 27,332

• Suburb in Virginia

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  Rating 4.22 out of 5  23 reviews

Current Resident: Franklin Farm is an amazing place to raise a family. Our children are constantly outside playing with other neighborhood children. There are lots of community events include ice cream socials, an egg hunt, breakfast with Santa, fall festival and food trucks! The neighborhood has 2 very nice pools (with a great swim team), lots of trails, playgrounds and ponds. The schools (Oak Hill, Franklin and Chantilly) are some of the very best! The shopping plaza has a grocery store, a few restaurants and other fun stops for kids (game store, ice cream shop) within walking distance. You can’t beat the location. It’s easy to see why year after year it is ranked as one of the top places to live in VA!... Read 23 reviews

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• Population 18,906

• Suburb of Richmond, VA

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  Rating 4 out of 5  4 reviews

Current Resident: I love the weather, the lakes, the flowers and gardens, its pristine and manicured. Great restaurants a and places to play. Amazing schools, awesome weather. Transplant from Seattle. It's so much better here than there. Lots of water here. Gorgeous. Lots of paths to walk on, parks to use. Shopping here is a breeze. Gorgeous shopping. Ponds, fish. Access to tons of jobs. Diverse, more of a richer area. Easy access to the freeways. International airport is not far. The gorgeous white sands at Virginia beach and otter banks are just right there. I'd say maybe 2 hours away drive tops. The costs of housing is more affordable here than Seattle that is for sure.... Read 4 reviews

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• Population 8,966

• Suburb in Virginia

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  Rating 4 out of 5  2 reviews

Current Resident: I love my little town. There are friendly faces wherever you turn. Always willing to lend a helping hand.... Read 2 reviews

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• Population 1,554

• Suburb in Virginia

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  Rating 3.57 out of 5  7 reviews

Current Resident: Wakefield is very small but it is quiet. You have to drive 30 minutes to get into the city. Everyone here is very friendly, when they driver by they honk their horns, smile, and wave. There is also no crime, everyone knows just about everyone.... Read 7 reviews

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• Population 11,534

• Suburb in Virginia

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  Rating 4 out of 5  1 review

Current Resident: I have lived in South Run for almost 10 years now. The neighborhood is very safe and the worst crime is petty theft. The community is amazing and family friendly with lots of activities for kids, such as summer swim team and fall festivals.... Read 1 review

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• Population 6,953

• Suburb in Virginia

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  Rating 4.17 out of 5  6 reviews

Current Resident: Overall, it is a very peaceful neighborhood and it has a lot of friendly people who are willing to step forward and help each other out. It is also very clean and organized, and there are a lot of dogs in the neighborhood!... Read 6 reviews

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• Population 11,272

• Suburb of Richmond, VA

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  Rating 3.84 out of 5  25 reviews

Current Resident: I’ve lived in Bon Air for 3 years and it is a great place to live. It is very accessible to all parts of the Richmond metro area, a short drive to Short Pump or downtown. One reviewer said there is crime, well, there is crime everywhere. If you look at Bon Air on crime nexus or other reporting site, it has some of the lowest crime in Metro Richmond and Chesterfield. Most of the crime is centralized towards Jahnke road and East of Chippenham Hospital. Bon Air is very safe. If we’re comparing accessibility, Bon Air is central to most of what you’d want to see in and around Richmond. It is also growing rapidly with Grocers such as Wegman’s, Lidls, Costco and Sam’s Club right on the border with other retail. Just North of Bon Air is the James River with access to many river activities. Most of Chesterfield County’s community events are also mostly localized in or very near Bon Air. Overall, excellent place to live!... Read 25 reviews

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• Population 17,846

• Suburb in Virginia

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  Rating 3.67 out of 5  27 reviews

Niche User: Not a lot of crime happens in our area, but whenever something does come up the police are very responsive and reliable.... Read 27 reviews

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• Population 11,951

• Suburb in Virginia

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  Rating 4.11 out of 5  63 reviews

Current Resident: Haymarket is a fantastic town! Extremely family friendly, with nonexistent crime and amazing schools. Also, it's more affordable than you'd think a NOVA suburb would be. The best suburban living has to offer!... Read 63 reviews

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• Population 1,556

• Suburb in Virginia

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  Rating 3.77 out of 5  22 reviews

Niche User: Being so close to the District of Columbia, there are so many government contractors in the area. Everyone is busy, everyone needs to get somewhere. There's so much pressure to succeed, to land the next big contract, to hit the best college. The area is basically one big pressure cooker. There are upsides to this. This area has some of the smartest people in the country, and there are plenty of places for entertainment and education. The only downside is the enormous, constant pressure and horribly high cost of living.... Read 22 reviews

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• Population 7,592

• Suburb in Virginia

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  Rating 3.74 out of 5  27 reviews

Current Resident: I love it, I've lived there my whole life. It's kind of like being secluded but still around a lot of things. 15 minutes in either direction is Woodbridge and Manassas/Gainesville which both have plenty of things to do. There are a lot of family friendly activities around the area. The schools are some of the best and newest in the county. I met a lot of good people and I have plenty of space to play with my siblings outside. It's a great place to live and I would recommend it to any family.... Read 27 reviews

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• Population 9,855

• Suburb in Virginia

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• Population 2,500