Blue Ridge Parkway clouds VA1
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Photo: Acroterion / CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons · Resized and re-encoded for web

Moving to Alleghany Highlands from Washington

For people leaving Washington, Southwest Virginia is one of the better-value places to land. Housing and taxes cost a good deal less here, and you're right next to the Blue Ridge.

5.8% → 5.75%
Top income tax (MD vs VA)
1.05% → ~1%
Property tax rate
~43% lower
Cost of living vs Washington
$329,450
Median home here
Calculate your Washington → Virginia savings →

Taxes

MD's top income tax rate is 5.8% versus Virginia's 5.75%, and property taxes run about 1.05% there versus roughly 1% across the region. On a $329,450 home that's a meaningful annual difference.

Cost of living & housing

Overall costs run about 43% lower here than in Washington. It takes only about $117,333 here to match a $200,000 lifestyle there. The $329,450 median home here would run on the order of $581,382 back in Washington.

Where to live

For a first pass, compare both the numbers and the lifestyle fit. These are useful starting points before you narrow to specific homes.

Local context

Covington City

A small independent city on the Jackson River where Interstate 64 crosses the Alleghany Mountains. The Highlands' commercial center, anchored by its longtime paper mill.

Then compare the broader area numbers:

AreaMedian priceTax /$100
Botetourt County$329,4500.70
Alleghany CountyCovington CityBotetourt CountyCraig County

Next steps

Run your numbersUse your actual income, current home value, and target area so the tax and affordability estimate is not generic.
Shortlist two or three areasPick one budget-first option, one commute-first option, and one daily-life option before looking at individual listings.
Check freshnessUse the source notes on each area page, especially where sale data is sparse or assessed values are used as a fallback.

Compare costs in the moving guide →

Sources and freshnessLast rebuilt 2026-09-14 with public records and source notes for moving from Washington to Alleghany Highlands.
  • Last rebuilt 2026-09-14 from the latest records synced into this guide.
  • Home-price medians use 630 recorded public sale rows across 1 area.
  • 1 area uses assessed value because usable sale-price coverage is limited.
  • 2 areas show an explicit coming-soon state rather than a guessed price.
  • Property and tax figures come from county/city parcel, sales, and assessor records.
  • School metrics use Virginia Department of Education profiles when available.
  • Amenity and business counts use OpenStreetMap, so hours and listings can change.
  • Jobs, events, news, and business-directory layers are included only after their feeds or curated sources sync.
  • Use these figures as planning estimates, then verify taxes, listings, and school details before making an offer.

Also exploring Southwest Virginia?

This page is focused on Alleghany Highlands. Open a neighboring guide when your search crosses into another part of the region.

Open NRV guideOpen Roanoke guideOpen Lynchburg guideOpen Charlottesville guideOpen Harrisonburg guideOpen Middle Peninsula guideOpen Winchester guideOpen NoVA guideOpen Bristol guideOpen Wytheville guideOpen SWVA guideOpen Culpeper guideOpen Martinsville guideOpen Southside guideOpen Farmville guideOpen Danville guideOpen Staunton guideOpen Richmond guideOpen Eastern Shore guideOpen Northern Neck guideOpen Fredericksburg guideOpen Petersburg guideOpen Hampton Roads guide