Is Sherwood a good place to buy near Little Rock AFB?
By Kyle Melvin · NMLS #1486450 · REV Mortgage · Licensed in Arkansas ·
Short answer
Sherwood is the middle option on the corridor: an established Pulaski County suburb fifteen to twenty minutes south of the gate and fifteen minutes from downtown Little Rock, with 1970s-to-2000s housing at a mid band and Pulaski County Special schools. It suits a dual-commuter household with one person at the base and one in the city, or a buyer who wants an older neighborhood with mature trees rather than a new subdivision. The appraisal work is on the 1970s and 1980s stock; the loan is simple at this band.
- Commute
- Main gate via Highway 67/167, 15–20 min; downtown Little Rock 15 min
- Housing stock
- 1970s–2000s subdivisions; mature lots; newer construction on the north edge toward Gravel Ridge
- Price band
- Mid; above Jacksonville, below Cabot
Sherwood is the suburb between the base and the city — south of Jacksonville on Highway 67/167, north of North Little Rock — and it has been the corridor's established middle for fifty years: neighborhoods with mature trees and 1970s-to-2000s houses, a city government of its own, and schools in the Pulaski County Special district.
Who lives here and why
Households with one person at the base and one in Little Rock, senior NCOs and officers who prefer an established neighborhood to a new subdivision, civilians from the base and the city, and long-time residents. The draw is balance: a fifteen-to-twenty-minute commute each way to the base and downtown, a mid band, and houses on real lots. The Sylvan Hills area is the schools name people use. The trade is age on the older stock and a market that, without Cabot's district or Jacksonville's proximity, is chosen for the neighborhood rather than a single reason.
The commute
Fifteen to twenty minutes north on 67/167 to the main gate, fifteen minutes south to downtown Little Rock. The Little Rock AFB guide maps the corridor by direction.
Housing stock and what the appraiser sees
The 1970s and 1980s subdivisions bring the central Arkansas list: hail-aged roofs, HVAC at the end of its life, peeling paint on pre-1978 homes, and wood-destroying insect damage and crawlspace moisture in the humid climate — a WDI inspection is standard practice on Arkansas VA purchases. The 1990s and 2000s stock is simpler. Some low areas near the bayou tributaries are mapped floodplain, with flood insurance required and escrowed. The appraisal page covers how conditions are cleared; the newer construction on the north edge follows the new-construction page rules.
The loan angle
Sherwood's mid band sits well inside what E-6-and-up BAH carries at Pulaski County's low tax rate; the BAH-to-payment calculator shows the margin. A buyer with a VA loan open elsewhere runs the second-tier calculation, which clears easily at Arkansas prices. An older Sherwood house with a good roof is a solid keep-as-a-rental given demand from both the base and the city; the renting-out page covers the decision. Arkansas's full exemption for 100% disabled veterans is on the Arkansas benefits page.
Around Little Rock AFB
Local details
- Schools
- Pulaski County Special School District — Sylvan Hills zones (verify boundaries)
- Taxes and fees
- Pulaski County and city of Sherwood; low property tax; HOAs on newer subdivisions only
- Watch for
- 1970s–1980s roofs and HVAC; hail; WDI and crawlspace moisture; peeling paint pre-1978; drainage in low areas
- BAH here
- Official rate by grade →
What schools serve Sherwood?
Sherwood is served by Pulaski County Special School District. Attendance zones change; confirm the assigned school for a specific address with the district.
| School | Grades | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Sylvan Hills Elementary | PK-5 | Clinton, Oakbrooke and Sherwood elementaries serve the other Sherwood zones |
| Sylvan Hills Middle School | 6-8 | |
| Sylvan Hills High School | 9-12 |
Performance data: the state's official school report card. This site does not publish third-party ratings; they change yearly and are not the district's own numbers.
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