Living in Norfolk, VA

Norfolk sits comfortably below national crime averages. The violent crime index is 55 against a national baseline of 100, and property crime registers at 78. Most neighborhoods feel safe for walking, errands, and daily life. Like anywhere, some areas need more caution than others — ask locals or check precinct maps before picking a neighborhood. Data from the FBI UCR.

Housing costs in Norfolk are reasonable. Median rent sits at $1,246/month with median household income at $64,017/year — a 23.4% rent-to-income ratio. That's well within the comfort zone that most financial advisors recommend. It's not dirt cheap, but most working households can afford rent here without financial strain. Other costs like groceries and utilities will vary, but the rent picture is solid. Census ACS 2023 data.

The average commute in Norfolk runs 21 minutes, which is moderate. 71.7% of commuters drive solo, contributing to peak-hour congestion. 2.8% use transit, and 8.6% work from home. Rush hour on major corridors will add 10-15 minutes on top of the average, so plan your route before you pick a neighborhood.

Everything on this page is built from public government sources: rent and income figures from the Census Bureau's American Community Survey (ACS 5-Year Estimates, 2023); commute and transportation data from Census ACS tables B08303 and B08006; crime rates from the FBI Uniform Crime Report. We refresh each dataset monthly through an automated pipeline and cross-check for anomalies. No surveys, no user-submitted guesses — just official federal data presented in a way that's actually useful for people researching a move.