Is Norfolk a good place to buy near Naval Station Norfolk?
By Kyle Melvin · NMLS #1486450 · REV Mortgage · Licensed in Virginia ·
Short answer
Norfolk is the closest housing to the naval station and the only answer that avoids every tunnel and bridge, which is why so many sailors on sea duty buy here. The trade is age: most of the stock is 1920s to 1960s, on crawlspaces, in a wet climate, and a lot of it near the water sits in a flood zone. For a VA buyer the price band is the lowest on the Southside for equivalent housing, and full entitlement covers it with no down payment; the money question is flood insurance, not the loan.
- Commute
- Naval Station Norfolk 10–20 minutes via Hampton Blvd or I-564; Little Creek 15–20 minutes; no tunnels
- Housing stock
- 1920s–1960s brick and frame on crawlspaces; townhome infill in Ocean View
- Price band
- Lowest on the Southside for equivalent housing; Larchmont and Ghent are the exception
Norfolk is a Navy city before it is anything else, and the neighborhoods closest to Sewells Point have housed sailors for a century. The appeal is simple: the naval station, Little Creek and the shipyard across the river are all reachable without a tunnel, and a sailor on sea duty who is gone half the tour wants the household that stays behind to have the shortest possible drive to everything.
Who lives here and why
Ocean View and East Ocean View, along the bay at the north end of the city, are the closest thing to a base town: older cottages, 1950s ranches, and a wave of townhome and condo infill built over the last twenty years, minutes from both the naval station and Little Creek. Wards Corner and Titustown are mid-century brick ranch neighborhoods a short drive south of the gates — the default for a family that wants a yard without a tunnel. Larchmont, Colonial Place and Ghent, along the Lafayette and Elizabeth rivers near Old Dominion and downtown, are the older, pricier neighborhoods — 1920s to 1950s homes that officers and dual-income households buy for the setting. The downside across the city is age and water: Norfolk's housing is old, the climate is wet, and much of it is low.
The commute
Hampton Boulevard and I-564 run straight to the naval station's gates; Shore Drive runs east to Little Creek. From Wards Corner or Ocean View the drive is ten to twenty minutes. Norfolk is also the only Southside city from which Oceana, Little Creek and the shipyard are all reasonable, which matters for a sailor whose next set of orders keeps them in Hampton Roads. The Naval Station Norfolk guide covers the rule that governs the whole region: same side of the water as your base.
Housing stock and what the appraiser sees
Norfolk is where the VA appraisal earns its reputation, fairly. Flood zones: Ocean View, East Ocean View, and the river-adjacent parts of Larchmont and Colonial Place carry required flood insurance, escrowed into the payment; get the zone and the elevation certificate with the disclosures. Crawlspaces under nearly all of the pre-1980 stock, in a wet climate, mean standing water, damaged vapor barriers and rot are common findings. Wood-destroying insects — a WDI inspection is standard practice on Virginia VA purchases and this is where the findings are. Peeling paint on pre-1978 homes, and roofs and electrical at the end of their life. None of it is a rejection; the appraisal page covers how conditions are cleared. Newer townhome projects in Ocean View trade those problems for HOA dues.
The loan angle
Norfolk's price band is the lowest on the Southside, so a full-entitlement buyer is nowhere near a limit and a sailor on a second VA loan almost always clears the second-tier calculation without a down payment. The line that actually moves the payment is flood insurance; run the BAH-to-payment calculator with a real quote, not the county average. Virginia's full property tax exemption for 100% permanent-and-total veterans applies — see the Virginia benefits page — and a Norfolk house is a routine keep-as-a-rental property at the next PCS, because the next crew is always arriving; the renting-out page covers it.
Around Naval Station Norfolk
Local details
- Schools
- Norfolk Public Schools (verify boundaries)
- Taxes and fees
- City of Norfolk real estate tax; few HOAs outside new townhome projects
- Watch for
- Flood zones in Ocean View and along the rivers; crawlspace moisture; WDI findings; roofs and electrical at end of life
- BAH here
- Official rate by grade →
What schools serve Norfolk?
Norfolk is served by Norfolk Public Schools. Attendance zones change; confirm the assigned school for a specific address with the district.
| School | Grades | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Ocean View Elementary | K-5 | Bay View, Little Creek and Sewells Point elementaries serve the base-side neighborhoods |
| Northside Middle | 6-8 | Azalea Gardens Middle serves the east side |
| Granby High | 9-12 | Norview and Maury High serve central and west Norfolk |
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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