Best Places50111, IA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 50111, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Local pay runs high here, and housing takes the biggest bite out of it. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
50111 ranks 38th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on a strong job market by a wide margin, and property taxes are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 50111
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.
50111's strengths and weaknesses
Where 50111 ranks high
- Local economyBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 98% of zip codes
- School gradeA+, better than 98% of zip codes
- Crime safetyBetter than 98% of zip codes
Where 50111 ranks low
- Low property taxBetter than only 7% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than only 17% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than only 19% of zip codes
- TransitBetter than only 35% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than only 41% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 50111
A household needs to earn about $96,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 50111 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $128,473, 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 50111's effective rate of 1.74%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices and rents, renting stays cheaper than buying across the first 10 years here, so the case for buying rests on staying much longer or on prices rising faster than assumed. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 50111
50111 runs younger than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 50111.
Who works in 50111, and how
Work in 50111 centers on health care & social and finance & insurance. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 75%
- Work from home 22%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in 50111
50111 has more parkland per resident than 69% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 50111 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 50111, month by month
50111 sees roughly 97 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 50111
The nearest airport, Des Moines International, is about 12 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Eppley Airfield, about 112 miles away.
The best schools in and around 50111
Schools across 50111 average an A+, better than 98% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- North Ridge ElementaryA+ · 83% proficient
- Walnut Hills Elementary SchoolA+ · 82% proficient
- Henry A Wallace Elementary SchoolA+ · 80% proficient
Top middle schools
- Waukee Middle SchoolA+ · 82% proficient
- Dc-g Oak ViewA+ · 82% proficient
- Woodward-granger Middle SchoolA+ · 81% proficient
Top high schools
- Woodward-granger High SchoolA · 78% proficient
- Dallas Center-grimes High SchoolA · 77% proficient
- Johnston Senior High SchoolA · 76% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 50111 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
50111 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 50111 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 50111
Is 50111 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 50111 ranks 38th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on a strong job market, few empty homes, and what local pay buys, 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 50111 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $326,132. The overall cost of living runs about 19% below the national average. Set against a $128,473 median income, cost of living beats 98% of zip codes.
Is 50111 safe?
Yes, 50111 is safer than 98% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $142 per resident a year.
Compare 50111 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 50111. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 50111 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.
50111 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 50111: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 50111: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 50111: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 50111: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
50111 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.