Best Places68959, NE Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 68959, 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.
68959 ranks 8,516th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on state finances by a wide margin, and distance from a big city ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 68959
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.
68959's strengths and weaknesses
Where 68959 ranks high
- State fiscal healthBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than 97% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than 90% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 90% of zip codes
- State infrastructureBetter than 85% of zip codes
Where 68959 ranks low
- Big-city accessBetter than only 6% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than only 16% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 18% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than only 24% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than only 31% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 68959
A household needs to earn about $59,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 68959 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $72,967, 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 68959's effective rate of 1.08%, 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 68959
68959'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 68959.
Who works in 68959, and how
Work in 68959 centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment is low, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 93%
- Work from home 5%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in 68959
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 68959.
What the weather is like in 68959, month by month
68959 sees roughly 127 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 87 degrees. January highs sit near 37, with lows near 18. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 37° | 26° | 18° |
| April | 66° | 50° | 38° |
| July | 87° | 75° | 65° |
| October | 67° | 52° | 40° |
Flying in and out of 68959
The nearest airport, Kearney Regional, is about 16 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Eppley Airfield, about 169 miles away.
The best schools in and around 68959
Schools across 68959 average a B+, better than 76% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Minden East Elementary SchoolA · 63% proficient
- Axtell Elementary SchoolB+ · 53% proficient
- Thunder Ridge ElementaryB · 50% proficient
Top middle schools
- Horizon Middle SchoolA− · 56% proficient
- C L Jones Middle SchoolB+ · 49% proficient
Top high schools
- Kenesaw Secondary SchoolA · 73% proficient
- Kearney High SchoolB · 50% proficient
- Minden High SchoolB · 48% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 68959 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
68959 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 68959 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 68959
Is 68959 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 68959 ranks 8,516th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on state finances, civic engagement, and walkability, and lowest on distance from a big city and tree cover. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 68959 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $216,504. The overall cost of living runs about 16% below the national average. Set against a $72,967 median income, cost of living beats 58% of zip codes.
Is 68959 safe?
Yes, 68959 is safer than 65% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $257 per resident a year.
Compare 68959 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 68959. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 68959 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.
68959 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 68959: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 68959: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 68959: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 68959: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
68959 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.