Best PlacesDouglas Acres, Des Moines, IA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Douglas Acres, Des Moines, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Costs and crime both read low, and the nearest big city is a drive away. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
Douglas Acres, Des Moines ranks 3,609th of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on state finances by a wide margin, and health outcomes rank lowest.
The best neighborhoods in Douglas Acres, Des Moines
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.
Douglas Acres, Des Moines' strengths and weaknesses
Where Douglas Acres, Des Moines ranks high
- State fiscal healthBetter than 97% of neighborhoods
- Cheap childcare$776 a month, better than 92% of neighborhoods
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than 90% of neighborhoods
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 89% of neighborhoods
- Crime safetyBetter than 78% of neighborhoods
Where Douglas Acres, Des Moines ranks low
- Health outlookBetter than only 7% of neighborhoods
- Low property taxBetter than only 7% of neighborhoods
- QuietBetter than only 8% of neighborhoods
- Big-city accessBetter than only 8% of neighborhoods
- WalkabilityBetter than only 19% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in Douglas Acres, Des Moines
A household needs to earn about $57,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Douglas Acres, Des Moines home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $64,964, 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 Douglas Acres, Des Moines' effective rate of 1.79%, 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 6 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Douglas Acres, Des Moines
Douglas Acres, Des Moines runs younger than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Douglas Acres, Des Moines.
Who works in Douglas Acres, Des Moines, and how
Work in Douglas Acres, Des Moines centers on retail trade and health care & social. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 88%
- Work from home 8%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in Douglas Acres, Des Moines
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across Douglas Acres, Des Moines.
What the weather is like in Douglas Acres, Des Moines, month by month
Douglas Acres, Des Moines sees roughly 96 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 86 degrees. January highs sit near 32, with lows near 16. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 32° | 23° | 16° |
| April | 63° | 50° | 40° |
| July | 86° | 75° | 66° |
| October | 64° | 52° | 43° |
Flying in and out of Douglas Acres, Des Moines
The nearest airport, Des Moines International, is about 9 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Eppley Airfield, about 123 miles away.
The best schools in and around Douglas Acres, Des Moines
Schools across Douglas Acres, Des Moines average a C+, better than 54% of neighborhoods.
Top elementary schools
- Cornell Elementary SchoolA− · 60% proficient
- Brubaker Elementary SchoolC · 34% proficient
- Garton ElementaryC · 33% proficient
Top middle schools
- Woodside Middle SchoolB− · 40% proficient
- Goodrell Middle SchoolC+ · 35% proficient
Top high schools
- Saydel High SchoolB · 46% proficient
- North High SchoolC+ · 39% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Douglas Acres, Des Moines school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Douglas Acres, Des Moines 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 Douglas Acres, Des Moines against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Common questions about living in Douglas Acres, Des Moines
Is Douglas Acres, Des Moines a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Douglas Acres, Des Moines ranks 3,609th of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on state finances, affordable childcare, and cheap car insurance, and lowest on health outcomes and property taxes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Douglas Acres, Des Moines expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $191,903. The overall cost of living runs about 23% below the national average. Set against a $64,964 median income, cost of living beats 54% of neighborhoods.
Is Douglas Acres, Des Moines safe?
Yes, Douglas Acres, Des Moines is safer than 78% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $291 per resident a year.
Compare Douglas Acres, Des Moines with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Douglas Acres, Des Moines. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Douglas Acres, Des Moines 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.
Douglas Acres, Des Moines detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Douglas Acres, Des Moines: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Douglas Acres, Des Moines: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Douglas Acres, Des Moines: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Douglas Acres, Des Moines: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Douglas Acres, Des Moines 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.