Best Places60970, IL Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 60970, 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.
60970 ranks 26,874th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. State finances pulls hardest against it, while it scores best on short commutes.
The best neighborhoods in 60970
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.
60970's strengths and weaknesses
Where 60970 ranks high
- Short commute19.4 minutes each way, better than 87% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than 85% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than 84% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than 78% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 78% of zip codes
Where 60970 ranks low
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than only 10% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than only 11% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 60970
A household needs to earn about $34,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 60970 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $53,190, 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 60970's effective rate of 1.55%, 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 5 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 60970
60970 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 60970.
Who works in 60970, and how
Work in 60970 centers on retail trade and health care & social. Unemployment sits above the national rate, 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 60970
60970 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 75% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 60970 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 60970, month by month
60970 sees roughly 71 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 84 degrees. January highs sit near 33, with lows near 20. The comfortable stretch runs May through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 33° | 26° | 20° |
| April | 62° | 50° | 40° |
| July | 84° | 74° | 65° |
| October | 66° | 55° | 45° |
Flying in and out of 60970
The nearest airport, University of Illinois/Willard, is about 59 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Chicago Midway International, about 70 miles away.
The best schools in and around 60970
Schools across 60970 average a D+, better than 16% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Iroquois West Elem School/gilmanA− · 60% proficient
- Donovan Elem SchoolC · 35% proficient
- Chebanse Elem SchoolC− · 30% proficient
Top middle schools
- Donovan Jr High SchoolB · 45% proficient
- Watseka Junior High SchoolD+ · 27% proficient
- Iroquois West Middle SchoolD · 23% proficient
Top high schools
- Milford High School CampusC− · 30% proficient
- Watseka Comm High SchoolD · 20% proficient
- Iroquois West High SchoolD− · 15% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 60970 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
60970 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 60970 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 60970
Is 60970 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 60970 ranks 26,874th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on short commutes, walkability, and fast internet, and lowest on state finances and taxes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 60970 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $119,393. The overall cost of living runs about 18% below the national average. Set against a $53,190 median income, cost of living beats 22% of zip codes.
Is 60970 safe?
60970 is safer than 49% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $257 per resident a year.
Compare 60970 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 60970. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 60970 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.
60970 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 60970: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 60970: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 60970: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 60970: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
60970 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.