Best Places81612, CO Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 81612, 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.
81612 ranks 16,504th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on low property taxes by a wide margin, and an overheated housing market is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 81612
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.
81612's strengths and weaknesses
Where 81612 ranks high
- Low property taxBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than 99% of zip codes
- TransitBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than 98% of zip codes
Where 81612 ranks low
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 1% of zip codes
- Crime safetyBetter than only 2% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 8% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 81612
A household needs to earn about $476,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 81612 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $83,125, 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 81612's effective rate of 0.15%, 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 81612
81612 runs older than the country, though fewer residents are over 65 than the national share, 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 81612.
Who works in 81612, and how
Work in 81612 centers on arts & entertainment and hospitality & food. Unemployment is low, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 19%
- Work from home 19%
- Transit, walk, or bike 62%
Life in 81612
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 81612.
What the weather is like in 81612, month by month
81612 sees roughly 132 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 84 degrees. January highs sit near 35, with lows near 7. The comfortable stretch runs June through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 35° | 21° | 7° |
| April | 57° | 41° | 26° |
| July | 84° | 66° | 47° |
| October | 62° | 43° | 28° |
Flying in and out of 81612
The nearest airport, Aspen-Pitkin County/Sardy Field, is about 3 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Denver International, about 124 miles away.
The best schools in and around 81612
Schools across 81612 average a B−, better than 62% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Aspen Elementary SchoolB− · 40% proficient
Top middle schools
- Aspen Middle SchoolB− · 40% proficient
Top high schools
- Aspen High SchoolB+ · 53% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 81612 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
81612 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 81612 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 81612
Is 81612 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 81612 ranks 16,504th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on low property taxes, heat safety, and transit, and lowest on an overheated housing market and crime. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 81612 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $2,000,001. The overall cost of living runs about 85% above the national average. Set against a $83,125 median income, cost of living beats 14% of zip codes.
Is 81612 safe?
81612 is safer than 2% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $1,271 per resident a year.
Compare 81612 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 81612. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 81612 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.
81612 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 81612: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 81612: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 81612: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 81612: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
81612 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.