menu






Real Estate Prices & Overview

Forest Hill / Pence Springs median real estate price is $185,032, which is more expensive than 50.0% of the neighborhoods in West Virginia and 21.0% of the neighborhoods in the U.S.

The average rental price in Forest Hill / Pence Springs is currently $1,694, based on NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis. The average rental cost in this neighborhood is higher than 88.7% of the neighborhoods in West Virginia.

Forest Hill / Pence Springs is a remote neighborhood (based on population density) located in Hinton, West Virginia.

Forest Hill / Pence Springs real estate is primarily made up of medium sized (three or four bedroom) to small (studio to two bedroom) single-family homes and mobile homes. Most of the residential real estate is owner occupied. Many of the residences in the Forest Hill / Pence Springs neighborhood are established but not old, having been built between 1970 and 1999. A number of residences were also built between 2000 and the present.

Vacant apartments or homes are a major fact of life in Forest Hill / Pence Springs. The current real estate vacancy rate here is 30.6%. This is higher than the rate of vacancies in 95.0% of all U.S. neighborhoods. A relatively large percentage of housing here is seasonally occupied (20.4%). This can occur in vacation areas, and occasionally it is also found in neighborhoods that are primarily filled with college students, as some apartments could be vacant when school is not in session. If you live here year round, you may find that a number of buildings in your neighborhood are actually empty.

Notable & Unique Neighborhood Characteristics

Many things matter about a neighborhood, but the first thing most people notice is the way a neighborhood looks and its particular character. For example, one might notice whether the buildings all date from a certain time period or whether shop signs are in multiple languages. This particular neighborhood in Hinton, the Forest Hill / Pence Springs neighborhood, has some outstanding things about the way it looks and its way of life that are worth highlighting.

People

Of note, 77.3% of the children in this area live in poverty; an extraordinarily high percentage compared to other neighborhoods in the nation. In a nation where approximately one in four children grows up in poverty, this neighborhood stands out for the depth of the problem manifested here.

In addition, an interesting characteristic about the Forest Hill / Pence Springs neighborhood is that there are more incarcerated people living here than 99.0% of neighborhoods in the U.S. The United States has the highest rate of incarceration in the world, currently with 1 out of every 100 adults in the country are incarcerated as a punishment for crimes committed. The extremely high incarceration rate of this neighborhood could mean that a prison, juvenile detention facility or other correctional facility occupies a large proportion of the neighborhood, or contains a large portion of the neighborhood's population.

Also, if you are planning to retire in West Virginia, this neighborhood should be on your must-see list. For many reasons, Forest Hill / Pence Springs may be considered a retiree's dream neighborhood. According to NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis and metrics, it's peaceful and quiet, has above average safety from crime compared to other neighborhoods in West Virginia, while also offering a diverse range of housing options. This, along with the vibrant mix of very educated seniors and other age groups who choose to live here, makes the neighborhood more retiree-friendly than 98.4% of neighborhoods in WV. If a West Virginia retirement is in your future, this neighborhood should be one of the places you visit.

Real Estate

Despite all of the residential real estate here in the Forest Hill / Pence Springs neighborhood, NeighborhoodScout has discovered that much of it is vacant. In resort or second-home vacation areas, this naturally occurs because homes and apartments are seasonally occupied, and empty for a portion of the year. In non-vacation or resort areas, however, this can be an indicator of property abandonment or a weak real estate market. The vacancy rate here is 30.6%, which is higher than 95.0% of all U.S. neighborhoods.

In addition, this neighborhood has wide open spaces, few people, and lots of space to stretch out. If you like locations that fit that description, you may like this neighborhood. Based on NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis, with only 34 people per square mile living here, this neighborhood is less crowded than 92.0% of America.

Diversity

Significantly, 2.2% of its residents five years old and above primarily speak German/Yiddish at home. While this may seem like a small percentage, it is higher than 96.9% of the neighborhoods in America.

The Neighbors

How wealthy a neighborhood is, from very wealthy, to middle income, to low income is very formative with regard to the personality and character of a neighborhood. Equally important is the rate of people, particularly children, who live below the federal poverty line. In some wealthy gated communities, the areas immediately surrounding can have high rates of childhood poverty, which indicates other social issues. NeighborhoodScout's analysis reveals both aspects of income and poverty for this neighborhood.

The neighbors in the Forest Hill / Pence Springs neighborhood in Hinton are low income, making it among the lowest income neighborhoods in America. NeighborhoodScout's research shows that this neighborhood has an income lower than 92.0% of U.S. neighborhoods. With 77.3% of the children here below the federal poverty line, this neighborhood has a higher rate of childhood poverty than 99.2% of U.S. neighborhoods.

A neighborhood is far different if it is dominated by enlisted military personnel rather than people who earn their living by farming. It is also different if most of the neighbors are clerical support or managers. What is wonderful is the sheer diversity of neighborhoods, allowing you to find the type that fits your lifestyle and aspirations.

In the Forest Hill / Pence Springs neighborhood, 30.2% of the working population is employed in executive, management, and professional occupations. The second most important occupational group in this neighborhood is sales and service jobs, from major sales accounts, to working in fast food restaurants, with 27.5% of the residents employed. Other residents here are employed in manufacturing and laborer occupations (27.0%), and 15.3% in clerical, assistant, and tech support occupations.

Languages

The languages spoken by people in this neighborhood are diverse. These are tabulated as the languages people preferentially speak when they are at home with their families. The most common language spoken in the Forest Hill / Pence Springs neighborhood is English, spoken by 95.8% of households. Other important languages spoken here include German/Yiddish and Polish.

Ethnicity / Ancestry

Culture is the shared learned behavior of peoples. Undeniably, different ethnicities and ancestries have different cultural traditions, and as a result, neighborhoods with concentrations of residents of one or another ethnicities or ancestries will express those cultures. It is what makes the North End in Boston so fun to visit for the Italian restaurants, bakeries, culture, and charm, and similarly, why people enjoy visiting Chinatown in San Francisco.

In the Forest Hill / Pence Springs neighborhood in Hinton, WV, residents most commonly identify their ethnicity or ancestry as Irish (13.9%). There are also a number of people of English ancestry (8.7%), and residents who report German roots (7.9%), and some of the residents are also of Scottish ancestry (4.3%), along with some Polish ancestry residents (2.5%), among others.

Getting to Work

How you get to work – car, bus, train or other means – and how much of your day it takes to do so is a large quality of life and financial issue. Especially with gasoline prices rising and expected to continue doing so, the length and means of one's commute can be a financial burden. Some neighborhoods are physically located so that many residents have to drive in their own car, others are set up so many walk to work, or can take a train, bus, or bike. The greatest number of commuters in Forest Hill / Pence Springs neighborhood spend between 15 and 30 minutes commuting one-way to work (48.8% of working residents), which is shorter than the time spent commuting to work for most Americans.

Here most residents (85.6%) drive alone in a private automobile to get to work. In addition, quite a number also carpool with coworkers, friends, or neighbors to get to work (9.0%) . In a neighborhood like this, as in most of the nation, many residents find owning a car useful for getting to work.


Real Estate includes:
Average Home Values
Rental Market
Housing Market Details
Neighborhood Setting
Economics & Demographics include:
Lifestyle & Special Character
Household Types
Commute To Work
Migration & Mobility
Race & Ethnic Diversity
Employment Industries & Occupations
Income & Unemployment Rate
Higher Education Attainment
Crime includes:
Neighborhood Crime Index
Crimes Per Square Mile
Property Crime Comparison
Violent Crime Comparison
Schools include:
School Ratings
Schools In District
Public School Test Scores
School District Enrollment
Educational Expenditures

comparable neighborhoods nearby