Best Places52776, IA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 52776, 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.
52776 ranks 5,957th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on state finances by a wide margin, and education levels rank lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 52776
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.
52776's strengths and weaknesses
Where 52776 ranks high
- State fiscal healthBetter than 94% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than 93% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than 92% of zip codes
- Short commute18.8 minutes each way, better than 89% of zip codes
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than 84% of zip codes
Where 52776 ranks low
- Educational attainmentBetter than only 18% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than only 21% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than only 25% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than only 28% of zip codes
- TransitBetter than only 35% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 52776
A household needs to earn about $60,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 52776 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $81,279, 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 52776's effective rate of 1.13%, 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 8 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 52776
52776 runs younger than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 52776.
Who works in 52776, and how
Work in 52776 centers on manufacturing and education. Unemployment is low, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 90%
- Work from home 6%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in 52776
52776 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 73% of zip codes and more parkland per resident than 98% of zip codes. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 52776 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 52776, month by month
52776 sees roughly 91 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 86 degrees. January highs sit near 32, with lows near 16. The comfortable stretch runs May, June, August, and September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 32° | 23° | 16° |
| April | 63° | 51° | 40° |
| July | 86° | 76° | 67° |
| October | 66° | 54° | 44° |
Flying in and out of 52776
The nearest airport, The Eastern Iowa, is about 32 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Chicago O'Hare International, about 175 miles away.
The best schools in and around 52776
Schools across 52776 average a B+, better than 72% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Hoover Elementary SchoolB+ · 55% proficient
- West Liberty Elementary SchoolC+ · 39% proficient
Top middle schools
- West Branch Middle SchoolA+ · 70% proficient
- West Liberty Middle SchoolA · 62% proficient
Top high schools
- West Branch High SchoolA− · 67% proficient
- West Liberty High SchoolB · 47% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 52776 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
52776 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 52776 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 52776
Is 52776 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 52776 ranks 5,957th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on state finances, few empty homes, and walkability, and lowest on education levels and a weak job market. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 52776 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $218,449. The overall cost of living runs about 12% below the national average. Set against a $81,279 median income, cost of living beats 64% of zip codes.
Is 52776 safe?
Yes, 52776 is safer than 66% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $256 per resident a year.
Compare 52776 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 52776. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 52776 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.
52776 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 52776: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 52776: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 52776: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 52776: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
52776 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.