Best Places99709, AK Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 99709, 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.
99709 ranks 9,079th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on low taxes by a wide margin, and childcare costs are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 99709
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.
99709's strengths and weaknesses
Where 99709 ranks high
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Short commute18.8 minutes each way, better than 89% of zip codes
- Educational attainmentBetter than 86% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than 86% of zip codes
Where 99709 ranks low
- Cheap childcare$1,521 a month, better than only 5% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than only 15% of zip codes
- State infrastructureBetter than only 18% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than only 26% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 99709
A household needs to earn about $87,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 99709 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $96,587, 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 99709's effective rate of 1.15%, 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 10 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 99709
99709 runs younger 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 99709.
Who works in 99709, and how
Work in 99709 centers on health care & social and education. Unemployment is close to the national rate.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 82%
- Work from home 9%
- Transit, walk, or bike 8%
Life in 99709
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 99709.
What the weather is like in 99709, month by month
99709 sees roughly 135 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 76 degrees. January highs sit near 6, with lows near -16. The comfortable stretch runs June through August.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 6° | -5° | -16° |
| April | 46° | 33° | 20° |
| July | 76° | 64° | 53° |
| October | 39° | 30° | 21° |
Flying in and out of 99709
The nearest airport, Fairbanks International, is about 3 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Ted Stevens Anchorage International, about 263 miles away.
The best schools in and around 99709
Schools across 99709 average a C, better than 35% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Watershed Charter SchoolA · 68% proficient
- Pearl Creek ElementaryB+ · 55% proficient
- Woodriver ElementaryC · 35% proficient
Top middle schools
- Randy Smith Middle SchoolC · 35% proficient
- Ryan Middle SchoolC− · 29% proficient
Top high schools
- Hutchison High SchoolC+ · 40% proficient
- West Valley High SchoolC+ · 35% proficient
- Lathrop High SchoolC+ · 35% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 99709 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
99709 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 99709 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 99709 suits
Remote workers
Internet is fast and widely advertised and 9% already work from home.
Common questions about living in 99709
Is 99709 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 99709 ranks 9,079th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on low taxes, heat safety, and short commutes, and lowest on childcare costs and distance from a big city. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 99709 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $316,774. The overall cost of living runs about 14% above the national average. Set against a $96,587 median income, cost of living beats 56% of zip codes.
Is 99709 safe?
99709 is safer than 36% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $603 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 99709?
July highs average about 76 degrees, and January highs near 6 with lows near -16. That works out to about 135 pleasant days a year, more than 84% of zip codes.
Is 99709 good for families?
Schools beat 35% of zip codes, crime safety beats 36%, and childcare runs $1,521 a month.
Compare 99709 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 99709. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 99709 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.
99709 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 99709: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 99709: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 99709: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 99709: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
99709 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.