Best Places50521, IA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 50521, 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.
50521 ranks 3,049th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on a stable housing market by a wide margin, and walkability ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 50521
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.
50521's strengths and weaknesses
Where 50521 ranks high
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 97% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than 94% of zip codes
- School gradeA, better than 92% of zip codes
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 91% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than 91% of zip codes
Where 50521 ranks low
- WalkabilityBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than only 15% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than only 16% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than only 25% of zip codes
- TransitBetter than only 35% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 50521
A household needs to earn about $58,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 50521 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $102,708, 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 50521's effective rate of 0.99%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Who lives in 50521
50521 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 50521.
Who works in 50521, and how
Work in 50521 centers on agriculture & forestry and hospitality & food. Unemployment is low, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 76%
- Work from home 12%
- Transit, walk, or bike 11%
Life in 50521
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 50521.
What the weather is like in 50521, month by month
50521 sees roughly 118 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 84 degrees. January highs sit near 28, with lows near 12. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 28° | 20° | 12° |
| April | 61° | 48° | 37° |
| July | 84° | 73° | 63° |
| October | 63° | 51° | 41° |
Flying in and out of 50521
The nearest airport, Fort Dodge Regional, is about 15 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Eppley Airfield, about 117 miles away.
The best schools in and around 50521
Schools across 50521 average an A, better than 92% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Dayton CenterA+ · 75% proficient
Top middle schools
- Southeast Webster-grand Southeast Valley MiddleA · 61% proficient
Top high schools
- Southeast Valley High SchoolA− · 62% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 50521 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
50521 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 50521 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 50521
Is 50521 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 50521 ranks 3,049th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on a stable housing market, state finances, and good schools, and lowest on walkability and air quality. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 50521 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $216,900. The overall cost of living runs about 17% below the national average. Set against a $102,708 median income, cost of living beats 91% of zip codes.
Is 50521 safe?
Yes, 50521 is safer than 72% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $226 per resident a year.
Compare 50521 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 50521. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 50521 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.
50521 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 50521: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 50521: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 50521: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 50521: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
50521 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.