Jared Stiegelmeyer
Charlottesville Managing Broker
Charlottesville38.4100° N 78.2800° W
Madison.
13,837 residents across 322 square miles, seated at Madison.
One of 9 areas our Charlottesville team works.
At a glanceMadison
The publicrecord.
What the county and the census hold on Madison — quoted, not estimated.
Rural, agriculture- and forestry-based, and one of Old Rag Mountain's two main gateways — the mountain sits inside Shenandoah National Park, but its main trailhead is reached through Madison County roads.
Wine and craft beverage are a growing second identity: Early Mountain Vineyards, DuCard Vineyards and what markets itself as Virginia's first historic farm brewery are all here.
Named for James Madison and organized in 1793, still one of the more sparsely populated counties in this market at roughly 43 people per square mile.
- Type
- County
- County seat
- Madison
- Population (2020)
- 13,837
- Land area
- 322 sq mi
- Communities we cover
- 4
- Established
- 1792
- Real estate tax rate (2026)
- $0.53 per $100
Figures from Wikidata, population as of 2020. The tax rate is published by the county and set annually; check the current year before budgeting.
Where it is38.4100° N 78.2800° W
Where isMadison?
The nearest of our other Charlottesville areas is Greene, 13 miles off.
24 mi
Central Charlottesville
north-east of center
53 mi
Fredericksburg
east
80 mi
Richmond
south-east
102 mi
Northern Neck
east
Distances are straight-line, not driving.
Getting around.
One US highway and two state routes carry most of the traffic; the county has no interstate of its own.
US-29
Runs through the county with a bypass around the town of Madison.
Routes 230 and 231
Cross the county, meeting near Pratts.
Charlottesville-Albemarle Airport
Roughly 20 miles by a combined estimate rather than a single published figure.
Shenandoah National Park
Madison is one of the park's eight counties, and Old Rag's main trailhead sits inside the county.
Inside the county4 communities
Every communitywe cover.
4 of them have homes on the market today. Each figure is live, and opens that search.
- 3BrightwoodSee the homes
A small unincorporated community of about 1,500, with a suburban-rural feel favoured by retirees.
- 1WolftownSee the home
Along the Blue Ridge's eastern foothills; the Rapidan Baptist Church was founded here in 1773, one of the oldest congregations in the area.
- 2SyriaSee the homes
The trailhead community for Old Rag Mountain — most hikers heading up the mountain's popular routes start and end here.
- 3EtlanSee the homes
Home to DuCard Vineyards, one of the county's working wineries.
Living here6 reasons
The case forMadison.
The figures above read plainly, and what they look like day to day. Where something is a trade-off, it says so.
Space
43 people to the square mile.
Of the 9 Charlottesville areas we hold both figures for, only 1 is more open — Madison ranks 2nd least crowded. If room is what you are buying, this end of the market is where it is.
Scale
13,837 people, as of 2020.
The 1st smallest of the 9 Charlottesville areas we hold a count for. Fewer houses change hands here in a year, and that cuts both ways — less to choose from, less to compete with.
The line that matters
Madison, seated at Madison.
In Virginia the county sets the rate, runs the school division and maintains the roads — and the lines do not follow the place names, so two houses a mile apart can sit under different rates and different schools.
Old Rag's front door
The most popular hike in Shenandoah National Park starts here.
The main access to Old Rag Mountain runs through Route 600 in Madison County — a strenuous nine-mile round trip with real rock scrambling, drawing hikers from across the region.
Not on the Parkway
The Blue Ridge Parkway doesn't reach Madison County.
Despite being deep in Blue Ridge country and inside Shenandoah National Park's own boundary, the Parkway itself runs through a different set of counties further south and west.
Working land, growing wine
A retail brand and a wine region, from the same small county.
Plow & Hearth started as a Madison retail store in 1980 and still runs two locations here; Early Mountain and DuCard vineyards, plus a working farm brewery, have added a newer identity alongside the county's long agricultural base.
SchoolsMadison County Public Schools
Schools andcolleges.
A small division of four schools and about 1,600 students, served by a community college outside the county.
Madison County Public Schools
One high school, one middle school and two elementary schools.
Germanna Community College
Names Madison among the localities it serves; Blue Ridge Community College, despite proximity, does not.
Woodberry Forest School
A private all-boys boarding school founded in 1889, with around 390 students.
Outdoors4 of them
Where theweekends go.
Old Rag and a shared wildlife management area are the two big draws.
Old Rag Mountain
Inside Shenandoah National Park, accessed via Route 600 — a roughly nine-mile round trip with real rock scrambling.
White Oak Canyon Falls
Also inside the park, in the county.
Rapidan Wildlife Management Area
10,326 acres shared with Greene County, adjoining the national park.
Early Mountain and DuCard vineyards
Both working wineries in the county.
On the market45 in Madison · live
Homes on themarket now.
On the market in Madison right now.
Live from search.hogangrp.com, refreshed hourly.
All Madison listingsSearchsearch.hogangrp.com · Live MLS
Homes inMadison.
The search opens already filtered to Madison — set a price and a bedroom count here and they travel with you.
See matching homes
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Your team17 in Charlottesville
People who livewhere they sell.
The Charlottesville team covers every one of these areas.
Matthew Cathcart
Associate Broker
Stephanie Alibakhshi
REALTOR®
Ricky Applegate
REALTOR®
Justine Beckham
REALTOR®
David Blackstock
REALTOR®
Bryan Board
REALTOR®
Clayton Butler
REALTOR®
Teresa Cason
REALTOR®
Kaylie Henry
REALTOR®
Danny Hugus
REALTOR®
Danielle Krumholz
REALTOR®
Lynsie McKeown
REALTOR®
Mary Beth Moran
REALTOR®
Karen Payton
REALTOR®
Rebecca Schuster
REALTOR®
Cathy Wiggin
REALTOR®
Nearby8 more in Charlottesville
The rest ofCharlottesville.
Same team, same standard, 8 other places — nearest first.
Questions5 answered
What peopleask us.
Asked often enough by people moving to Madison to be worth answering in writing.
Rural and sparsely populated — about 43 people per square mile — with a working agricultural base and a growing wine and craft-beverage identity alongside it.
$0.53 per $100 of assessed value for 2026, up two cents from 2025.
Madison County Public Schools — about 1,600 students across four schools. Germanna Community College serves the area; Blue Ridge Community College's service area does not reach Madison despite the geographic proximity.
Its trailhead and the county roads that reach it are, yes — the mountain itself sits inside Shenandoah National Park, one of eight counties the park spans.
No — despite being deep in Blue Ridge country, the Parkway's route through Virginia doesn't include Madison County.
Sources · checked September 14, 2026
Tax rate · School division · Old Rag · Blue Ridge Parkway counties · Rapidan WMA · Wolftown · Woodberry Forest
Thinking of selling
What is your Madison homeactually worth?
Mike Hogan founded the brokerage on knowing the county rather than the listing. Ask what that means for this street — or take a cash offer from a local investor and skip the showings entirely. Neither route commits you to the other.