Living in Granbury, Texas: homes, schools and costs

The book's checklist

Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 12.2% below the U.S. average in the parts of Texas outside metro areas.
More house for the moneyA typical home costs 4.3 years of the typical household's income here. Across the U.S. it's 4.1.
A safer neighborhood23 violent crimes were reported in 2025, about 1.7 per 1,000 people (U.S.: 3.3). Property crime: 35.3 per 1,000 (U.S.: 15.3).
Schools in town9 public schools: 5 elementary, 2 middle, 1 high school and 1 other.
A hospital close byLake Granbury Medical Center is in town and has an emergency room.
Within reach of a big cityDallas is about 64 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 Granbury 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

Boom town. The population is up 20% since 2020. Growing fast, with rising home values. Watch for chain stores and big apartment complexes: the small-town feel may not last.

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: $315,800U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then: Up 8.1%Hood County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities: $1,386 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income: $73,516U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them: 60%U.S.: 65%
Typical property tax bill: $4,073 a yearTexas: $4,232
Homes built before 1940: 3%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010: 37%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes: 2%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices: 87.8U.S. average = 100 (the parts of Texas outside metro areas)

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 8.1% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the parts of Texas outside metro areas, not Granbury 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: 13,2632020: 11,054
Median age: 51 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older: 30%U.S.: 17%
Under 18: 17%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more: 31%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year: 10%U.S.: 6%
College students: 5%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: Schools, health care and social services (17%); professional and business services (12%); retail (12%)
Unemployment rate: 3%U.S.: 5%
Average commute: 31 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home: 14%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line: 7%U.S.: 12%

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

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Lake Granbury Medical Center, Granbury, TX, in town. It's a general hospital. Medicare gives it 3 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

9 public schools in Granbury, run by Granbury Isd.

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on Texas'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: 81%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: 31°F
July average high: 96°F
Days 90°F or hotter: 104 a year
Nights at or below freezing: 58 a year
Rain and melted snow: 34.2 inches a year
Snow: 0 inches a year
Elevation: 710 feet

Weather stations: Granbury 5N (6 miles away) and Rainbow (12 miles away, rain and snow). 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

Burleson, TXCity of 57,00027

Dallas, TXMetro of 8.5 million64

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: Burleson, Dallas.

Hood County is outside any metro area, with 20,000 or more people in its towns, next to a metro area (USDA rural-urban code 4, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

4 places on the National Register of Historic Places, including the Hood County Courthouse Historic District.

Read about Granbury's history on Wikipedia.

Know Granbury?

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

DeCordova, TX3,300 people, 5 miles
Oak Trail Shores, TX3,000 people, 5 miles
Pecan Plantation, TX6,500 people, 9 miles
Tolar, TX1,500 people, 9 miles
Cresson, TX2,100 people, 11 miles
Glen Rose, TX3,100 people, 13 miles

Smaller places

Stockton Bend, TX419 people, 3 miles
Canyon Creek, TX (unincorporated)1,646 people, 4 miles
Horseshoe Bend, TX (unincorporated)606 people, 12 miles
Western Lake, TX (unincorporated)1,165 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.