Best Places81527, CO Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 81527, 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.
81527 ranks 16,544th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on low property taxes by a wide margin, and air quality ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 81527
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.
81527's strengths and weaknesses
Where 81527 ranks high
- Low property taxBetter than 93% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 162 pleasant days a year, better than 92% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than 88% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than 87% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than 71% of zip codes
Where 81527 ranks low
- Air qualityBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than only 10% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 81527
A household needs to earn about $107,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 81527 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $82,272, so buying stretches a typical household.
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 81527's effective rate of 0.38%, 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 81527
81527 runs older than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 81527.
Who works in 81527, and how
Work in 81527 centers on retail trade and education. Unemployment sits above the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 80%
- Work from home 14%
- Transit, walk, or bike 6%
Life in 81527
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 81527.
What the weather is like in 81527, month by month
81527 sees roughly 162 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 98 degrees. January highs sit near 41, with lows near 18. The comfortable stretch runs May and September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 41° | 29° | 18° |
| April | 70° | 53° | 37° |
| July | 98° | 82° | 64° |
| October | 70° | 54° | 39° |
Flying in and out of 81527
The nearest airport, Grand Junction Regional, is about 14 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Denver International, about 210 miles away.
The best schools in and around 81527
Schools across 81527 average a C−, better than 27% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Wingate Elementary SchoolA− · 61% proficient
- Taylor Elementary SchoolC · 35% proficient
- Lincoln Elementary SchoolC · 35% proficient
Top middle schools
- Redlands Middle SchoolC+ · 38% proficient
- Delta Middle SchoolD+ · 25% proficient
- Mount Garfield Middle SchoolD+ · 24% proficient
Top high schools
- Fruita Monument High SchoolB− · 45% proficient
- Palisade High SchoolB− · 41% proficient
- Grand Junction High SchoolC · 34% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 81527 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
81527 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 81527 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 81527
Is 81527 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 81527 ranks 16,544th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on low property taxes, the weather, and a strong job market, and lowest on air quality and walkability. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 81527 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $435,587. The overall cost of living runs about 2% above the national average. Set against a $82,272 median income, cost of living beats 47% of zip codes.
Is 81527 safe?
81527 is safer than 55% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $428 per resident a year.
Compare 81527 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 81527. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 81527 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.
81527 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 81527: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 81527: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 81527: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 81527: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
81527 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.