Best Places61530, IL Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 61530, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. This page is for people who live here or already know they want to. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
61530 ranks 16,041st of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. State finances pulls hardest against it, while it scores best on cell coverage.
The best neighborhoods in 61530
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.
61530's strengths and weaknesses
Where 61530 ranks high
- Cell coverageBetter than 88% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 86% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than 78% of zip codes
- Educational attainmentBetter than 76% of zip codes
- State infrastructureBetter than 76% of zip codes
Where 61530 ranks low
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than only 9% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$1,150 a month, better than only 21% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than only 29% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 61530
A household needs to earn about $52,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 61530 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $68,313, 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 61530's effective rate of 1.63%, 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 61530
61530'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 61530.
Who works in 61530, and how
Work in 61530 centers on health care & social and education. Unemployment sits above the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 85%
- Work from home 10%
- Transit, walk, or bike 5%
Life in 61530
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 61530.
What the weather is like in 61530, month by month
61530 sees roughly 74 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 88 degrees. January highs sit near 36, with lows near 18. The comfortable stretch runs May, June, and August through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 36° | 27° | 18° |
| April | 66° | 52° | 40° |
| July | 88° | 77° | 66° |
| October | 70° | 56° | 45° |
Flying in and out of 61530
The nearest airport, General Downing - Peoria International, is about 22 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Chicago Midway International, about 108 miles away.
The best schools in and around 61530
Schools across 61530 average a B, better than 65% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Metamora Grade SchoolB · 46% proficient
- Goodfield Elem SchoolB · 45% proficient
- Lincoln Grade SchoolB− · 40% proficient
Top middle schools
- Washington Middle SchoolB+ · 51% proficient
- Eureka Middle SchoolB+ · 48% proficient
- Roanoke-benson Jr High SchoolB− · 43% proficient
Top high schools
- Eureka High SchoolB · 50% proficient
- Metamora High SchoolB · 46% proficient
- Washington Comm High SchoolB− · 42% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 61530 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
61530 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 61530 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 61530
Is 61530 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 61530 ranks 16,041st of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on cell coverage, a stable housing market, and walkability, 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 61530 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $179,394. The overall cost of living runs about 6% below the national average. Set against a $68,313 median income, cost of living beats 37% of zip codes.
Is 61530 safe?
Yes, 61530 is safer than 57% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $231 per resident a year.
Compare 61530 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 61530. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 61530 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.
61530 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 61530: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 61530: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 61530: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 61530: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
61530 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.