Best Places52761, IA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 52761, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Several measures below read low, and the ranked lists name which ones. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
52761 ranks 7,947th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on state finances by a wide margin, and property taxes are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 52761
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.
52761's strengths and weaknesses
Where 52761 ranks high
- State fiscal healthBetter than 94% of zip codes
- Short commute17.8 minutes each way, better than 92% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than 88% of zip codes
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than 84% of zip codes
- TransitBetter than 82% of zip codes
Where 52761 ranks low
- Low property taxBetter than only 13% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than only 22% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than only 29% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than only 40% of zip codes
- Household income$68,892 median, better than only 41% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 52761
A household needs to earn about $54,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 52761 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $68,892, 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 52761's effective rate of 1.49%, 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 52761
52761'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 52761.
Who works in 52761, and how
Work in 52761 centers on manufacturing and health care & social. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 89%
- Work from home 7%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in 52761
52761 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 70% of zip codes and more parkland per resident than 95% of zip codes. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 52761 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 52761, month by month
52761 sees roughly 87 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 86 degrees. January highs sit near 33, with lows near 18. The comfortable stretch runs May, June, August, and September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 33° | 25° | 18° |
| April | 63° | 51° | 41° |
| July | 86° | 76° | 66° |
| October | 66° | 54° | 44° |
Flying in and out of 52761
The nearest airport, Quad Cities International, is about 28 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Chicago O'Hare International, about 166 miles away.
The best schools in and around 52761
Schools across 52761 average a B+, better than 76% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Blue Grass Elementary SchoolA · 67% proficient
- Louisa-muscatine ElementaryA · 65% proficient
- Durant Elementary SchoolA · 65% proficient
Top middle schools
- West Liberty Middle SchoolA · 62% proficient
- Walcott IntermediateA− · 57% proficient
- Susan Clark Junior HighA− · 53% proficient
Top high schools
- Wilton Jr-sr High SchoolA · 71% proficient
- Louisa-muscatine Jr/sr High SchoolA · 70% proficient
- Durant Junior/senior High SchoolA− · 62% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 52761 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
52761 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 52761 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 52761 suits
Remote workers
Internet is fast and widely advertised and 7% already work from home.
Retirees
Set weather, quiet, and health care weights on the map to test the fit.
Common questions about living in 52761
Is 52761 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 52761 ranks 7,947th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on state finances, short commutes, and fast internet, and lowest on property taxes and noise. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 52761 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $187,627. The overall cost of living runs about 15% below the national average. Set against a $68,892 median income, cost of living beats 47% of zip codes.
Is 52761 safe?
Yes, 52761 is safer than 78% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $229 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 52761?
July highs average about 86 degrees, and January highs near 33 with lows near 18. That works out to about 87 pleasant days a year, more than 52% of zip codes.
Is 52761 good for families?
Schools beat 76% of zip codes, crime safety beats 78%, and childcare runs $731 a month.
Compare 52761 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 52761. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 52761 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.
52761 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 52761: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 52761: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 52761: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 52761: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
52761 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.