Living in Jefferson City, Tennessee: homes, schools and costs

The book's checklist

Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 13.6% below the U.S. average in the Morristown metro area.
More house for the moneyA typical home costs 3.5 years of the typical household's income here. Across the U.S. it's 4.1.
A safer neighborhood20 violent crimes were reported in 2025, about 2.2 per 1,000 people (U.S.: 3.3). Property crime: 22.9 per 1,000 (U.S.: 15.3).
Schools in town5 public schools: 2 elementary, 1 middle, 1 high school and 1 other.
A hospital close byTennova Healthcare-Jefferson Memorial Hospital is in town and has an emergency room.
Within reach of a big cityKnoxville is about 28 miles away as the crow flies. The book suggests staying within about 60 miles if you'll miss big-city sports, concerts and theater.

A check means Jefferson City meets the rule of thumb from Frank and Dave's book. An empty box isn't a deal breaker: it's something to weigh for your family. A question mark means there isn't enough data.

What kind of town

A suburb, not a stand-alone small town

Jefferson City runs into the built-up area around Morristown (Census Bureau, 2020 urban areas). We include suburbs under 20,000 people because some still feel like small towns, but daily life here is closer to the suburbs than to the towns Frank and Dave's book describes. Weigh it against towns farther out.

The book sorts small towns into six types. These labels come only from the numbers; take the quiz to see which type fits your family.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Typical home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024: $213,200U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then: Up 26%Jefferson County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities: $851 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income: $60,638U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them: 51%U.S.: 65%
Typical property tax bill: $1,045 a yearTennessee: $1,442
Homes built before 1940: 9%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010: 9%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes: 1%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices: 86.4U.S. average = 100 (the Morristown metro area)

Home values and rents are what households told the Census Bureau across 2020 to 2024, so they trail today's market: county prices have moved up 26% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the Morristown metro area, not Jefferson City alone. Check current listings before you budget.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates; Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions); U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.

The people

Population, 2025 estimate: 9,1032020: 8,419
Median age: 33.7 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older: 13%U.S.: 17%
Under 18: 19%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more: 20%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year: 10%U.S.: 6%
College students: 14%share of all residents

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025); U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Work

Biggest lines of work: Retail (27%); schools, health care and social services (16%); manufacturing (15%)
Unemployment rate: 6%U.S.: 5%
Average commute: 27 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home: 3%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line: 19%U.S.: 12%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Tennova Healthcare-Jefferson Memorial Hospital, Jefferson City, TN, in town. It's a general hospital. Medicare gives it 2 of 5 stars.

Look up doctors, clinics and the hospitals themselves on Medicare's Care Compare. Ask where the most serious cases are sent.

Sources: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information.

Schools

5 public schools in Jefferson City, run by Jefferson County.

Colleges in or next to town: Carson-Newman University (1,000 to 4,999 students).

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on Tennessee's school report card.

Sources: National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal); National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024.

Internet

Homes with cable, fiber or DSL internet: 76%U.S.: 76%
Homes with any internet subscription: 92%U.S.: 91%

Before you buy, look up the address on the FCC's National Broadband Map to see which providers serve it.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Weather

January average low: 24°F
July average high: 87°F
Days 90°F or hotter: 24 a year
Nights at or below freezing: 103 a year
Rain and melted snow: 48.5 inches a year
Snow: 3 inches a year
Elevation: 1,127 feet

Weather station: Jefferson City (1 mile away). Averages for 1991 to 2020.

Sources: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020; U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program.

Getting around

Knoxville, TNMetro of 1 million28

Straight-line miles. The road is always longer, and as the book says, an interstate at 70 is a different trip from a farm road at 45. Check the real drive: Knoxville.

Jefferson County is in a metro area of fewer than 250,000 people (USDA rural-urban code 3, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

5 places on the National Register of Historic Places.

National Park Service sites within about an hour:

Great Smoky Mountains National Park24 miles
Appalachian National Scenic Trail30 miles
Cumberland Gap National Historical Park32 miles
Andrew Johnson National Historic Site36 miles
Blue Ridge Parkway43 miles

Campus life. Check Carson-Newman University's events calendar for games, concerts and plays open to the public.

Read about Jefferson City's history on Wikipedia.

Know Jefferson City?

Tell us what a visitor shouldn't miss, and what living there is really like. Write to Main Street at mainstreet@smalltownguide.com. The best notes from people who know the town will be added here.

Nearby

Straight-line miles.

Small towns

New Market, TN1,400 people, 4 miles
Dandridge, TN3,900 people, 7 miles
Strawberry Plains, TN2,700 people, 10 miles
Rutledge, TN1,400 people, 11 miles
White Pine, TN2,600 people, 11 miles
Morristown, TN34,000 people, 12 miles

Smaller places

Baneberry, TN585 people, 13 miles

Sources

Census survey figures are estimates with a margin of error; we leave out any figure whose margin is too wide to be useful. Data last gathered October 5, 2026. See something wrong? Write to mainstreet@smalltownguide.com.