Most Walkable Charlottesville Homes

by Jim Duncan on December 24, 2009

These are the most “walkable” homes as deemed by the website Walkscore. While not 100% accurate, they provide a very good idea as to what is a walkable home in Charlottesville. You can search for all homes in Charlottesville MLS here.

Showing properties 1 - 10 of 355. See more city of Charlottesville (city Of) real estate.
(all data current as of 9/5/2010)

  1. 2 beds, 2 full, 1 part baths
    Size: 1,314 sq ft
    Listed with SLOAN MILBY REAL ESTATE PARTNERS
  2. 2 beds, 2 full baths
    Size: 1,050 sq ft
    Listed with SLOAN MILBY REAL ESTATE PARTNERS
  3. 3 beds, 3 full baths
    Size: 1,495 sq ft
    Listed with SLOAN MILBY REAL ESTATE PARTNERS
  4. 3 beds, 2 full, 2 part baths
    Size: 2,300 sq ft
    Listed with RE/MAX REALTY SPECIALISTS
  5. 2 beds, 2 full, 1 part baths
    Size: 1,314 sq ft
    Listed with SLOAN MILBY REAL ESTATE PARTNERS
  6. 3 beds, 2 full, 1 part baths
    Size: 1,600 sq ft
    Listed with AKARION REALTY - FLUVANNA
  7. 3 beds, 2 full, 1 part baths
    Size: 1,600 sq ft
    Listed with AKARION REALTY - FLUVANNA
  8. 2 beds, 2 full baths
    Size: 1,890 sq ft
    Listed with SLOAN MILBY REAL ESTATE PARTNERS
  9. 3 beds, 2 full, 1 part baths
    Size: 1,644 sq ft
    Listed with BHG REAL ESTATE III - NORTH
  10. 3 beds, 2 full baths
    Size: 1,012 sq ft
    Listed with BHG REAL ESTATE III - GLENMORE

Listing information deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Read full disclaimer.

Walkscore’s site.

What’s a Walkscore?

The Walk Score Web site uses Google Maps, specifically Google’s Local Search API (application programming interface), to find the stores, restaurants, bars, parks and other amenities within walking distance of any address you enter. Walk Score currently includes addresses in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom.

Using a patent-pending algorithm, Walk Score establishes neighborhood boundaries using data from the real estate information Web site Zillow, calculates the distances from your entered location to amenities in your walkshed via Google Maps, and weighs in the population density information from the 2000 census.

Based on these three fold criteria, Walk Score ranks an address with a score between zero and 100 (100 being the best). Amenities within 0.25 miles (0.4 kilometers) of the central location are given the most points — the greater the distance, the fewer points are awarded. Places farther than one mile (1.6 kilometers) away are given zero points. Scores are broken into five categories. The most desirable scores are between 70 and 100: 90-100 is considered a walkers’ paradise where residents don’t need to own a car; 70-89 is very walkable and residents probably don’t need a car. Below 70 and you get into the neighborhoods that are somewhat walkable but probably necessitate public transportation, a bike or a car for getting around. A score below 50 means the community is car-dependent, and a score below 25 means residents need to drive everywhere.

Benefits of Walking
Walking requires no special training or equipment and if you do it every day, it can help you manage your blood pressure, blood sugar and cholesterol levels, as well as reduce your risk of heart attack, stroke, type 2 diabetes and some types of cancer.

A good walking speed is brisk, about 3 to 4 miles per hour (4 to 6 kilometers per hour), and just 30 minutes a day (including three 10-minute bursts) can help you stay in shape, manage your weight and feel good.

A few caveats about scoring: Walk Score depends on the available data sources. If it doesn’t know about the Starbucks located just across the street from your house, it can’t include it in its rankings. Luckily, you have the opportunity to add missing community amenities to Google’s Local Search API and in doing so, increase your walk score rank. Walk Score is also blind to some important details — it doesn’t include such factors as topography, street design, available public transportation or bodies of water in its rankings. It calculates as the crow flies, which means that if there’s a lake between you and the closest coffee shop, Walk Score assumes you’re more than happy to swim for your caffeine fix.

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