Best Places50009, IA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 50009, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Several measures below read low, and the ranked lists name which ones. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
50009 ranks 1,842nd of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on low crime by a wide margin, and property taxes are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 50009
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.
50009's strengths and weaknesses
Where 50009 ranks high
- Crime safetyBetter than 95% of zip codes
- School gradeA, better than 95% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than 94% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than 92% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than 91% of zip codes
Where 50009 ranks low
- Low property taxBetter than only 13% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than only 18% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than only 18% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than only 24% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than only 41% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 50009
A household needs to earn about $81,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 50009 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $89,030, 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 50009's effective rate of 1.48%, 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 10 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 50009
50009's age mix sits close to the national median.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 50009.
Who works in 50009, and how
Work in 50009 centers on retail trade and health care & social. Unemployment sits above the national rate, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 84%
- Work from home 14%
- Transit, walk, or bike 1%
Life in 50009
50009 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 72% of zip codes and more parkland per resident than 72% of zip codes. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 50009 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 50009, month by month
50009 sees roughly 99 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 86 degrees. January highs sit near 32, with lows near 16. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 32° | 23° | 16° |
| April | 63° | 50° | 40° |
| July | 86° | 75° | 66° |
| October | 64° | 52° | 43° |
Flying in and out of 50009
The nearest airport, Des Moines International, is about 12 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Eppley Airfield, about 128 miles away.
The best schools in and around 50009
Schools across 50009 average an A, better than 95% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Mitchellville ElementaryA+ · 85% proficient
- Delaware ElementaryA+ · 75% proficient
- Centennial ElementaryA · 72% proficient
Top middle schools
- Spring Creek - 6th GradeA+ · 79% proficient
- Bondurant - Farrar Intermediate SchoolA+ · 72% proficient
Top high schools
- Bondurant-farrar High SchoolA · 76% proficient
- Southeast Polk High SchoolA− · 66% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 50009 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
50009 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 50009 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 50009 suits
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 87% of zip codes, internet is fast and widely advertised, and 14% already work from home.
Retirees
The weather beats 63% of zip codes and health care access beats 62%.
Common questions about living in 50009
Is 50009 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 50009 ranks 1,842nd of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on low crime, good schools, and state finances, and lowest on property taxes and tree cover. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 50009 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $284,457. The overall cost of living runs about 21% below the national average. Set against a $89,030 median income, cost of living beats 87% of zip codes.
Is 50009 safe?
Yes, 50009 is safer than 95% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $159 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 50009?
July highs average about 86 degrees, and January highs near 32 with lows near 16. That works out to about 99 pleasant days a year, more than 63% of zip codes.
Is 50009 good for families?
Schools beat 95% of zip codes, crime safety beats 95%, and childcare runs $776 a month.
Compare 50009 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 50009. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 50009 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.
50009 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 50009: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 50009: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 50009: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 50009: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
50009 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.