Best Places97448, OR Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 97448, 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.
97448 ranks 17,625th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on state infrastructure by a wide margin, and childcare costs are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 97448
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.
97448's strengths and weaknesses
Where 97448 ranks high
- State infrastructureBetter than 96% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than 93% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than 87% of zip codes
- TransitBetter than 81% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than 77% of zip codes
Where 97448 ranks low
- Cheap childcare$1,398 a month, better than only 10% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 16% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than only 22% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than only 25% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than only 25% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 97448
A household needs to earn about $125,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 97448 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $80,056, 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 97448's effective rate of 0.56%, 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 97448
97448 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 97448.
Who works in 97448, and how
Work in 97448 centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 80%
- Work from home 12%
- Transit, walk, or bike 8%
Life in 97448
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 97448.
What the weather is like in 97448, month by month
97448 sees roughly 90 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 88 degrees. January highs sit near 51, with lows near 35. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 51° | 42° | 35° |
| April | 65° | 51° | 39° |
| July | 88° | 70° | 51° |
| October | 68° | 54° | 42° |
Flying in and out of 97448
The nearest airport, Mahlon Sweet Field, is about 6 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Portland International, about 100 miles away.
The best schools in and around 97448
Schools across 97448 average a C+, better than 41% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Territorial Elementary SchoolB · 50% proficient
- Monroe Grade SchoolC · 35% proficient
- Harrisburg Elementary SchoolC · 35% proficient
Top middle schools
- Oaklea Middle SchoolC · 35% proficient
- Fern Ridge Middle SchoolC− · 28% proficient
- Harrisburg Middle SchoolD+ · 25% proficient
Top high schools
- Willamette High SchoolB+ · 53% proficient
- Junction City High SchoolC+ · 35% proficient
- Harrisburg High SchoolC+ · 35% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 97448 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
97448 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 97448 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 97448
Is 97448 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 97448 ranks 17,625th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on state infrastructure, few empty homes, and clean air, and lowest on childcare costs and disaster risk. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 97448 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $495,874. The overall cost of living runs about 0% below the national average. Set against a $80,056 median income, cost of living beats 44% of zip codes.
Is 97448 safe?
97448 is safer than 38% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $470 per resident a year.
Compare 97448 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 97448. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 97448 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.
97448 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 97448: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 97448: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 97448: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 97448: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
97448 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.