Best Places97135, OR Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 97135, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. The coast is close, and the measures below put a number on how close. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
97135 ranks 13,183rd of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on short commutes by a wide margin, and disaster risk is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 97135
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.
97135's strengths and weaknesses
Where 97135 ranks high
- Short commute11.4 minutes each way, better than 99% of zip codes
- State infrastructureBetter than 96% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than 86% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than 85% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than 83% of zip codes
Where 97135 ranks low
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 6% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- School gradeD+, better than only 16% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 22% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than only 38% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 97135
A household needs to earn about $124,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 97135 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $85,301, 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 97135's effective rate of 0.66%, 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 97135
97135 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 97135.
Who works in 97135, and how
Work in 97135 centers on education and admin & support services. Unemployment is low, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 62%
- Work from home 14%
- Transit, walk, or bike 24%
Life in 97135
The coast is about 1 minutes away. Distance to the water changes a lot across 97135, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 97135, month by month
97135 sees roughly 124 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 70 degrees. January highs sit near 52, with lows near 38. The comfortable stretch runs June through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 52° | 44° | 38° |
| April | 58° | 49° | 41° |
| July | 70° | 60° | 52° |
| October | 63° | 53° | 45° |
Flying in and out of 97135
The nearest airport, McNary Field, is about 51 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Portland International, about 71 miles away.
The best schools in and around 97135
Schools across 97135 average a D+, better than 16% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Nestucca K8D+ · 24% proficient
Top high schools
- Nestucca High SchoolC− · 27% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 97135 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
97135 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 97135 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 97135
Is 97135 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 97135 ranks 13,183rd of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on short commutes, state infrastructure, and civic engagement, and lowest on disaster risk and empty homes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 97135 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $481,819. The overall cost of living runs about 3% above the national average. Set against a $85,301 median income, cost of living beats 46% of zip codes.
Is 97135 safe?
Yes, 97135 is safer than 76% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $294 per resident a year.
Compare 97135 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 97135. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 97135 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.
97135 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 97135: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 97135: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 97135: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 97135: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
97135 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.