Best Places81123, CO Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 81123, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Several measures below read low, and the ranked lists name which ones. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
81123 ranks 30,615th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on clean air by a wide margin, and a weak job market ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 81123
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.
81123's strengths and weaknesses
Where 81123 ranks high
- Air qualityBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than 95% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than 94% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 165 pleasant days a year, better than 93% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than 79% of zip codes
Where 81123 ranks low
- Local economyBetter than only 2% of zip codes
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than only 3% of zip codes
- Household income$36,664 median, better than only 3% of zip codes
- School gradeD−, better than only 3% of zip codes
- Crime safetyBetter than only 6% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 81123
A household needs to earn about $38,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 81123 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is only a little above the area's median income of $36,664; the gap is small, which keeps homes within reach of local pay.
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 81123's effective rate of 0.33%, 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 4 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 81123
81123 runs older than the country, 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 81123.
Who works in 81123, and how
Work in 81123 centers on agriculture & forestry and health care & social. Unemployment sits above the national rate, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 89%
- Work from home 8%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in 81123
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 81123.
What the weather is like in 81123, month by month
81123 sees roughly 165 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 86 degrees. January highs sit near 37, with lows near -1. The comfortable stretch runs June through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 37° | 17° | -1° |
| April | 64° | 45° | 23° |
| July | 86° | 66° | 46° |
| October | 67° | 45° | 24° |
Flying in and out of 81123
The nearest airport, San Luis Valley Regional/Bergman Field, is about 18 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Denver International, about 174 miles away.
The best schools in and around 81123
Schools across 81123 average a D−, better than 3% of zip codes.
Top high schools
- Sierra Grande K-12 SchoolD · 14% proficient
- Centennial SchoolD− · 12% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 81123 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
81123 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 81123 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 81123
Is 81123 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 81123 ranks 30,615th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on clean air, low property taxes, and heat safety, and lowest on a weak job market and the cost of living against local pay. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 81123 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $157,130. The overall cost of living runs about 16% below the national average. Set against a $36,664 median income, cost of living beats 3% of zip codes.
Is 81123 safe?
81123 is safer than 6% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $986 per resident a year.
Compare 81123 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 81123. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 81123 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.
81123 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 81123: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 81123: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 81123: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 81123: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
81123 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.