Best Places50129, IA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 50129, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Costs and crime both read low, and the nearest big city is a drive away. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
50129 ranks 12,534th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on civic engagement by a wide margin, and property taxes are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 50129
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.
50129's strengths and weaknesses
Where 50129 ranks high
- Voter turnoutBetter than 94% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than 94% of zip codes
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than 88% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than 86% of zip codes
- School gradeA−, better than 84% of zip codes
Where 50129 ranks low
- Low property taxBetter than only 17% of zip codes
- Household income$60,396 median, better than only 25% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than only 27% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than only 28% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than only 28% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 50129
A household needs to earn about $44,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 50129 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $60,396, 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 50129's effective rate of 1.37%, 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 7 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 50129
50129 runs older than the country, 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 50129.
Who works in 50129, and how
Work in 50129 centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment is low, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 91%
- Work from home 8%
- Transit, walk, or bike 1%
Life in 50129
50129 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 76% of zip codes and more parkland per resident than 97% of zip codes. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 50129 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 50129, month by month
50129 sees roughly 102 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 87 degrees. January highs sit near 32, with lows near 13. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 32° | 22° | 13° |
| April | 64° | 49° | 37° |
| July | 87° | 75° | 63° |
| October | 66° | 51° | 40° |
Flying in and out of 50129
The nearest airport, Fort Dodge Regional, is about 38 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Eppley Airfield, about 92 miles away.
The best schools in and around 50129
Schools across 50129 average an A−, better than 84% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Paton-churdan ElementaryA− · 62% proficient
- Greene County ElementaryB+ · 55% proficient
- Panorama ElementaryB+ · 53% proficient
Top middle schools
- Panorama Middle SchoolA+ · 73% proficient
- Greene County Middle SchoolA · 60% proficient
Top high schools
- Panorama High SchoolA− · 65% proficient
- Greene County High SchoolA− · 63% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 50129 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
50129 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 50129 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 50129
Is 50129 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 50129 ranks 12,534th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on civic engagement, state finances, and cheap car insurance, and lowest on property taxes and low incomes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 50129 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $154,928. The overall cost of living runs about 17% below the national average. Set against a $60,396 median income, cost of living beats 39% of zip codes.
Is 50129 safe?
Yes, 50129 is safer than 81% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $221 per resident a year.
Compare 50129 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 50129. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 50129 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.
50129 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 50129: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 50129: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 50129: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 50129: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
50129 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.