Best Places50801, IA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 50801, 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.
50801 ranks 11,951st of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on short commutes by a wide margin, and property taxes are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 50801
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.
50801's strengths and weaknesses
Where 50801 ranks high
- Short commute13.6 minutes each way, better than 98% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than 95% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than 94% of zip codes
- School gradeA−, better than 87% of zip codes
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than 86% of zip codes
Where 50801 ranks low
- Low property taxBetter than only 9% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 66 pleasant days a year, better than only 17% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than only 23% of zip codes
- Household income$60,784 median, better than only 26% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than only 26% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 50801
A household needs to earn about $43,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 50801 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $60,784, 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 50801's effective rate of 1.65%, 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 50801
50801's age mix sits close to the national median, 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 50801.
Who works in 50801, and how
Work in 50801 centers on health care & social and manufacturing. Unemployment is low, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 89%
- Work from home 4%
- Transit, walk, or bike 7%
Life in 50801
50801 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 66% of zip codes and more parkland per resident than 94% of zip codes. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 50801 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 50801, month by month
50801 sees roughly 66 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 85 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 | 85° | 75° | 66° |
| October | 65° | 53° | 44° |
Flying in and out of 50801
The nearest airport, Des Moines International, is about 49 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Eppley Airfield, about 81 miles away.
The best schools in and around 50801
Schools across 50801 average an A−, better than 87% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Lenox Elementary SchoolA · 70% proficient
- East Union ElementaryA · 63% proficient
- Orient Elementary SchoolA− · 58% proficient
Top middle schools
- Creston Middle SchoolA · 63% proficient
Top high schools
- Creston High SchoolA · 69% proficient
- Lenox High SchoolA− · 63% proficient
- Murray Jr/sr HighB+ · 57% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 50801 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
50801 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 50801 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 50801
Is 50801 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 50801 ranks 11,951st of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on short commutes, civic engagement, and state finances, and lowest on property taxes and the weather. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 50801 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $147,861. The overall cost of living runs about 19% below the national average. Set against a $60,784 median income, cost of living beats 38% of zip codes.
Is 50801 safe?
Yes, 50801 is safer than 74% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $242 per resident a year.
Compare 50801 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 50801. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 50801 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.
50801 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 50801: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 50801: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 50801: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 50801: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
50801 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.