Best Places50325, IA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 50325, 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.
50325 ranks 396th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on what local pay buys by a wide margin, and noise is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 50325
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.
50325's strengths and weaknesses
Where 50325 ranks high
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 99% of zip codes
- School gradeA, better than 96% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than 94% of zip codes
- Household income$138,468 median, better than 94% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than 94% of zip codes
Where 50325 ranks low
- QuietBetter than only 6% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than only 13% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than only 33% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than only 42% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than only 43% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 50325
A household needs to earn about $117,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 50325 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $138,468, 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 50325's effective rate of 1.50%, 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 50325
50325'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 50325.
Who works in 50325, and how
Work in 50325 centers on finance & insurance and education. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 72%
- Work from home 26%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in 50325
50325 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 84% of zip codes and more parkland per resident than 96% of zip codes. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 50325 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 50325, month by month
50325 sees roughly 82 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 88 degrees. January highs sit near 34, with lows near 15. The comfortable stretch runs May, June, August, and September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 34° | 23° | 15° |
| April | 66° | 51° | 39° |
| July | 88° | 77° | 66° |
| October | 68° | 54° | 43° |
Flying in and out of 50325
The nearest airport, Des Moines International, is about 9 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Eppley Airfield, about 111 miles away.
The best schools in and around 50325
Schools across 50325 average an A, better than 96% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Shuler Elementary SchoolA+ · 84% proficient
- Walnut Hills Elementary SchoolA+ · 82% proficient
- Eason Elementary SchoolA+ · 76% proficient
Top middle schools
- Waukee Middle SchoolA+ · 82% proficient
- South Middle SchoolA+ · 78% proficient
- Indian Hills Junior High SchoolA · 67% proficient
Top high schools
- Waukee High SchoolA · 76% proficient
- Valley High SchoolA · 75% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 50325 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
50325 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 50325 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 50325
Is 50325 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 50325 ranks 396th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on what local pay buys, good schools, and biking, and lowest on noise and property taxes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 50325 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $409,789. The overall cost of living runs about 17% below the national average. Set against a $138,468 median income, cost of living beats 99% of zip codes.
Is 50325 safe?
Yes, 50325 is safer than 59% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $275 per resident a year.
Compare 50325 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 50325. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 50325 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.
50325 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 50325: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 50325: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 50325: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 50325: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
50325 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.