Best Places61846, IL Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 61846, 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.
61846 ranks 22,973rd of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on a stable housing market by a wide margin, and the schools rank lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 61846
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.
61846's strengths and weaknesses
Where 61846 ranks high
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 94% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than 91% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than 83% of zip codes
- State infrastructureBetter than 76% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$730 a month, better than 69% of zip codes
Where 61846 ranks low
- School gradeD−, better than only 2% of zip codes
- 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 7% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 62 pleasant days a year, better than only 11% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 61846
A household needs to earn about $24,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 61846 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $63,398, 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 61846's effective rate of 1.75%, 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 3 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 61846
61846 runs older than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 61846.
Who works in 61846, and how
Work in 61846 centers on manufacturing and health care & social. Unemployment is low, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 88%
- Work from home 10%
- Transit, walk, or bike 1%
Life in 61846
61846 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 78% of zip codes and more parkland per resident than 92% of zip codes. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 61846 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 61846, month by month
61846 sees roughly 62 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 85 degrees. January highs sit near 36, with lows near 22. The comfortable stretch runs May through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 36° | 28° | 22° |
| April | 64° | 52° | 42° |
| July | 85° | 74° | 65° |
| October | 68° | 56° | 46° |
Flying in and out of 61846
The nearest airport, University of Illinois/Willard, is about 34 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Indianapolis International, about 73 miles away.
The best schools in and around 61846
Schools across 61846 average a D−, better than 2% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Pine Crest Elementary SchoolD− · 13% proficient
Top middle schools
- Mary Miller Junior High SchoolD− · 13% proficient
Top high schools
- Georgetown-ridge Farm High SchoolF · 8% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 61846 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
61846 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 61846 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 61846
Is 61846 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 61846 ranks 22,973rd of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on a stable housing market, walkability, and fast internet, and lowest on the schools and state finances. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 61846 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $81,942. The overall cost of living runs about 22% below the national average. Set against a $63,398 median income, cost of living beats 47% of zip codes.
Is 61846 safe?
61846 is safer than 33% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $308 per resident a year.
Compare 61846 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 61846. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 61846 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.
61846 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 61846: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 61846: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 61846: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 61846: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
61846 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.