Best Places61011, IL Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 61011, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Local pay runs high here, and housing takes the biggest bite out of it. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
61011 ranks 3,760th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on few empty homes by a wide margin, and property taxes are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 61011
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.
61011's strengths and weaknesses
Where 61011 ranks high
- Low vacancyBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Crime safetyBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 96% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than 91% of zip codes
- Household income$122,101 median, better than 90% of zip codes
Where 61011 ranks low
- Low property taxBetter than only 3% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- School gradeD+, better than only 16% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$1,106 a month, better than only 24% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 61011
A household needs to earn about $97,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 61011 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $122,101, 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 61011's effective rate of 2.07%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices and rents, renting stays cheaper than buying across the first 10 years here, so the case for buying rests on staying much longer or on prices rising faster than assumed. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 61011
61011 runs older than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 61011.
Who works in 61011, and how
Work in 61011 centers on manufacturing and health care & social. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 85%
- Work from home 12%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in 61011
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 61011.
What the weather is like in 61011, month by month
61011 sees roughly 77 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 87 degrees. January highs sit near 33, with lows near 16. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 33° | 24° | 16° |
| April | 63° | 49° | 37° |
| July | 87° | 75° | 63° |
| October | 67° | 53° | 42° |
Flying in and out of 61011
The nearest airport, Chicago/Rockford International, is about 14 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Chicago O'Hare International, about 59 miles away.
The best schools in and around 61011
Schools across 61011 average a D+, better than 16% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Stone Creek SchoolB · 48% proficient
- Kinnikinnick SchoolC · 34% proficient
- Seth Whitman Elem SchC− · 28% proficient
Top middle schools
- Thurgood Marshall SchoolA+ · 82% proficient
- North Boone Middle SchoolD · 20% proficient
- Belvidere Central Middle SchoolD− · 13% proficient
Top high schools
- Hononegah Chd High SchoolB · 50% proficient
- Belvidere North High SchC− · 30% proficient
- North Boone High SchoolD− · 15% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 61011 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
61011 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 61011 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 61011
Is 61011 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 61011 ranks 3,760th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on few empty homes, low crime, and what local pay buys, and lowest on property taxes and state finances. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 61011 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $317,512. The overall cost of living runs about 12% below the national average. Set against a $122,101 median income, cost of living beats 96% of zip codes.
Is 61011 safe?
Yes, 61011 is safer than 98% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $113 per resident a year.
Compare 61011 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 61011. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 61011 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.
61011 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 61011: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 61011: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 61011: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 61011: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
61011 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.