Best Places88424, NM Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 88424, 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.
88424 ranks 19,535th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on clean air by a wide margin, and distance from a big city ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 88424
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.
88424's strengths and weaknesses
Where 88424 ranks high
- Air qualityBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than 96% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 150 pleasant days a year, better than 89% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 85% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than 84% of zip codes
Where 88424 ranks low
- Big-city accessBetter than only 3% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- Crime safetyBetter than only 5% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 88424
A household needs to earn about $43,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 88424 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $75,292, 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 88424's effective rate of 0.30%, 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 7 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 88424
88424's age mix sits close to the national median, and households here run larger than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 88424.
Who works in 88424, and how
Work in 88424 centers on agriculture & forestry and construction. Unemployment is low, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 74%
- Work from home 20%
- Transit, walk, or bike 6%
Life in 88424
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 88424.
What the weather is like in 88424, month by month
88424 sees roughly 150 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 92 degrees. January highs sit near 52, with lows near 21. The comfortable stretch runs May, June, and August through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 52° | 35° | 21° |
| April | 72° | 53° | 36° |
| July | 92° | 76° | 61° |
| October | 74° | 55° | 40° |
Flying in and out of 88424
The nearest airport, Pueblo Memorial, is about 132 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Albuquerque International Sunport, about 196 miles away.
The best schools in and around 88424
Schools across 88424 average a B+, better than 83% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Roy ElementaryA+ · 75% proficient
- Des Moines ElementaryA · 65% proficient
Top high schools
- Des Moines HighA− · 65% proficient
- Clayton HighD− · 16% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 88424 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
88424 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 88424 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 88424
Is 88424 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 88424 ranks 19,535th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on clean air, low property taxes, and the weather, 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 88424 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $175,681. The overall cost of living runs about 14% below the national average. Set against a $75,292 median income, cost of living beats 56% of zip codes.
Is 88424 safe?
88424 is safer than 5% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $1,009 per resident a year.
Compare 88424 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 88424. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 88424 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.
88424 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 88424: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 88424: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 88424: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 88424: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
88424 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.