Best Places45879, OH Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 45879, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. This page is for people who live here or already know they want to. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
45879 ranks 15,244th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on cheap car insurance by a wide margin, and the weather ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 45879
BestNeighborhood is the only ranking that scores 40 measures of daily life neighborhood by neighborhood and lets you re-weight every one of them yourself.
45879's strengths and weaknesses
Where 45879 ranks high
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Short commute21.1 minutes each way, better than 80% of zip codes
- School gradeB+, better than 75% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than 73% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than 68% of zip codes
Where 45879 ranks low
- Nice weatherabout 61 pleasant days a year, better than only 10% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than only 23% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than only 25% of zip codes
- Household income$62,517 median, better than only 29% of zip codes
- Educational attainmentBetter than only 29% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 45879
A household needs to earn about $37,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 45879 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $62,517, so a typical household can afford the median home outright.
Where the monthly payment goes
Assumes a 20% down payment, a 6.6% 30-year fixed rate, and a 28% share of income going to the payment. The rate is the 2026-07-23 30-year fixed average, series MORTGAGE30US from the St. Louis Fed, which publishes Freddie Mac's weekly survey. Against the median home value, property tax uses 45879's effective rate of 0.78%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices, buying tends to cost more than renting for about the first 6 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 45879
45879's age mix sits close to the national median, and households here run smaller than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 45879.
Who works in 45879, and how
Work in 45879 centers on manufacturing and health care & social. Unemployment sits above the national rate, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 93%
- Work from home 4%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in 45879
45879 has more parkland per resident than 95% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 45879 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 45879, month by month
45879 sees roughly 61 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 87 degrees. January highs sit near 36, with lows near 20. The comfortable stretch runs May through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 36° | 28° | 20° |
| April | 63° | 50° | 38° |
| July | 87° | 75° | 63° |
| October | 68° | 55° | 44° |
Flying in and out of 45879
The nearest airport, Fort Wayne International, is about 34 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Detroit Metro Wayne County, about 97 miles away.
The best schools in and around 45879
Schools across 45879 average a B+, better than 75% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Oakwood Elementary SchoolA+ · 82% proficient
- Grover Hill Elementary SchoolA+ · 75% proficient
- Antwerp Local Elementary SchoolA · 72% proficient
Top middle schools
- Antwerp Local Middle SchoolA+ · 68% proficient
- Paulding Middle SchoolB+ · 52% proficient
Top high schools
- Wayne Trace High SchoolA · 69% proficient
- Antwerp Local High SchoolA− · 62% proficient
- Paulding High SchoolC+ · 40% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 45879 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
45879 measure by measure
Cards are ordered by how much each measure matters to you, so the ones you weighted highest come first. Expand to see every measure. Percentages compare 45879 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 45879
Is 45879 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 45879 ranks 15,244th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on cheap car insurance, short commutes, and good schools, and lowest on the weather and health outcomes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 45879 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $143,078. The overall cost of living runs about 19% below the national average. Set against a $62,517 median income, cost of living beats 46% of zip codes.
Is 45879 safe?
45879 is safer than 45% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $298 per resident a year.
Compare 45879 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 45879. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 45879 represents the same real quantity as a 60 anywhere else, and the ranking is a weighted average of those absolutes. The map colors come from a national scale calibrated against a population weighted random sample of 5,000 neighborhoods. That absolute scoring is what no other places-to-live ranking does: it puts a single neighborhood, a town, a metro, and a state on one scale, so the same 40 measures answer both which metro to move to and which street inside it to buy on. Read the full methodology.
45879 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 45879: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 45879: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 45879: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 45879: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
45879 detail on related sites:
- CrimeGrade: neighborhood crime rates behind the crime safety score.
- ISPreports.org: provider by provider internet availability and advertised speeds.
- CoverageWatch: the car insurance premiums behind the cheap car insurance score.
Federal and public data:
- U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey: income, home value, rent, vacancy, commute time and mode, educational attainment, home age, age structure, household type, industry, and race.
- NOAA Global Surface Summary of the Day: the daily station record behind the monthly temperatures and the pleasant-day count.
- FAA Passenger Boarding Data: airport size and annual passenger counts.
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey: the 30-year fixed rate used in the cost-to-buy estimate.
- FBI Crime Data Explorer: reported offenses behind the tangible crime cost estimate.
- U.S. EPA Air Quality System: five year average air quality index.
- FEMA National Risk Index: expected annual loss from natural hazards.
- CDC PLACES: disease burden, preventable risk, and barriers to care.
- National Center for Education Statistics: school enrollment and assessment inputs behind the school grade.
- FCC National Broadband Map: internet and wireless availability.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: employment and job growth behind the local economy score.
- Religious activity uses a proprietary religious signal measurement.
Your priorities
Move a slider to say how much a measure matters. Zero turns it off.