The book's checklist
- Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 13% below the U.S. average in the parts of West Virginia outside metro areas.
- More house for the moneyThe Census survey didn't reach enough homes in Athens to say.
- A safer neighborhoodThe FBI has no 2025 figures for Athens itself. Many small towns are patrolled by the county sheriff, so call the sheriff's office and ask what calls they get most.
- Schools in town1 public school. No public high school in town: the nearest is Pikeview High School, about 3 miles away.
- A hospital close byPrinceton Community Hospital Assn INC in Princeton, about 7 miles away, has the nearest emergency room.
- Within reach of a big cityCharlotte is about 153 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 Athens 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
College town. About 42% of residents are college students, with Concord University in town. Concerts, sports and good food all year, and a big employer that rarely closes. Expect higher home prices close to campus.
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
- $168,100U.S.: $332,700
- Home prices since then
- Up 13%Mercer County, 2022 to 2025
- Typical rent, with utilities
- $975 a monthU.S.: $1,413
- Homes owned by the people living in them
- 74%U.S.: 65%
- Typical property tax bill
- $854 a yearWest Virginia: $865
- Homes built since 2010
- 0%U.S.: 11%
- Vacation and seasonal homes
- 5%U.S.: 3%
- Everyday prices
- 87U.S. average = 100 (the parts of West Virginia 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 13% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the parts of West Virginia outside metro areas, not Athens 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
- 1,1842020: 1,220
- Median age
- 21.1 yearsU.S.: 38.9
- Age 65 and older
- 12%U.S.: 17%
- Under 18
- 18%U.S.: 22%
- Adults with a bachelor's degree or more
- 48%U.S.: 36%
- Moved here from another county or state in the past year
- 21%U.S.: 6%
- College students
- 42%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 (41%); arts, recreation, lodging and restaurants (12%); government (10%)
- Work from home
- 12%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: Princeton Community Hospital Assn INC, Princeton, WV, about 7 miles away. 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
1 public school in Athens, run by Mercer County Schools. The nearest public high school is Pikeview High School, about 3 miles away.
Colleges in or next to town: Concord University (1,000 to 4,999 students).
See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on West Virginia'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
- 84%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
- 22°F
- July average high
- 82°F
- Days 90°F or hotter
- 3 a year
- Nights at or below freezing
- 125 a year
- Rain and melted snow
- 41 inches a year
- Snow
- 24 inches a year
- Elevation
- 2,515 feet
Weather stations: Athens (1 mile away) and Princeton (5 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
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: Princeton Community Hospital Assn INC, Roanoke, Charlotte.
Mercer 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
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
National Park Service sites within about an hour:
- Bluestone National Scenic River7 miles
- Appalachian National Scenic Trail12 miles
- New River Gorge National Park and Preserve19 miles
- Gauley River National Recreation Area50 miles
- Blue Ridge Parkway52 miles
Campus life. Check Concord University's events calendar for games, concerts and plays open to the public.
Read about Athens's history on Wikipedia.
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
- Princeton, WV5,600 people, 6 miles
- Narrows, VA2,000 people, 13 miles
- Bluefield, WV9,200 people, 15 miles
- Pearisburg, VA2,900 people, 17 miles
- Hinton, WV2,100 people, 19 miles
- Bluefield, VA4,800 people, 19 miles
Smaller places
- Oakvale, WV132 people, 6 miles
- Lashmeet, WV (unincorporated)655 people, 10 miles
- Rich Creek, VA738 people, 11 miles
- Peterstown, WV449 people, 12 miles
- Montcalm, WV (unincorporated)484 people, 14 miles
- Ghent, WV (unincorporated)290 people, 15 miles
Sources
- U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025)
- 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
- FBI, Crime in the United States, Table 8 (offenses known to law enforcement by city)
- Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information
- 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
- NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020
- U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places listings
- National Park Service, park unit boundaries
- USDA Economic Research Service, Rural-Urban Continuum Codes, 2023
- U.S. Census Bureau, 2025 Gazetteer files and 2020 urban areas
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.