Best Places61771, IL Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 61771, 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.
61771 ranks 9,994th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. State finances pulls hardest against it, while it scores best on what local pay buys.
The best neighborhoods in 61771
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.
61771's strengths and weaknesses
Where 61771 ranks high
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 87% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 86% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than 85% of zip codes
- Educational attainmentBetter than 84% of zip codes
- Household income$102,316 median, better than 82% of zip codes
Where 61771 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 6% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than only 11% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than only 15% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 61771
A household needs to earn about $94,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 61771 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $102,316, 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 61771's effective rate of 1.82%, 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 61771
61771's age mix sits close to the national median, and households here run larger than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 61771.
Who works in 61771, and how
Work in 61771 centers on retail trade and health care & social. Unemployment sits above the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 91%
- Work from home 6%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in 61771
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 61771.
What the weather is like in 61771, month by month
61771 sees roughly 82 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 85 degrees. January highs sit near 35, with lows near 20. The comfortable stretch runs May through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 35° | 26° | 20° |
| April | 63° | 51° | 41° |
| July | 85° | 75° | 66° |
| October | 66° | 55° | 46° |
Flying in and out of 61771
The nearest airport, Central Il Regional/Bloomington- Normal, is about 20 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Chicago Midway International, about 104 miles away.
The best schools in and around 61771
Schools across 61771 average a B−, better than 52% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Congerville Elem SchoolB · 50% proficient
- Davenport Elem SchoolB− · 40% proficient
- Sowers Elementary SchoolC · 35% proficient
Top middle schools
- Eureka Middle SchoolB+ · 48% proficient
- Roanoke-benson Jr High SchoolB− · 43% proficient
Top high schools
- Eureka High SchoolB · 50% proficient
- El Paso-gridley High SchoolC · 33% proficient
- Roanoke-benson High SchoolC− · 30% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 61771 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
61771 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 61771 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 61771
Is 61771 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 61771 ranks 9,994th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on what local pay buys, a stable housing market, and a strong job market, 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 61771 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $314,928. The overall cost of living runs about 10% below the national average. Set against a $102,316 median income, cost of living beats 87% of zip codes.
Is 61771 safe?
Yes, 61771 is safer than 81% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $185 per resident a year.
Compare 61771 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 61771. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 61771 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.
61771 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 61771: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 61771: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 61771: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 61771: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
61771 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.