Best PlacesIndianola Hills, Des Moines, IA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Indianola Hills, Des Moines, 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.
Indianola Hills, Des Moines ranks 3,410th of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on state finances by a wide margin, and distance from a big city ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in Indianola Hills, 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.
Indianola Hills, Des Moines' strengths and weaknesses
Where Indianola Hills, Des Moines ranks high
- State fiscal healthBetter than 97% of neighborhoods
- Tree shadeBetter than 92% of neighborhoods
- Cheap childcare$776 a month, better than 92% of neighborhoods
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than 90% of neighborhoods
- Internet speedBetter than 78% of neighborhoods
Where Indianola Hills, Des Moines ranks low
- Big-city accessBetter than only 8% of neighborhoods
- Low property taxBetter than only 9% of neighborhoods
- BikingBetter than only 22% of neighborhoods
- WalkabilityBetter than only 24% of neighborhoods
- Educational attainmentBetter than only 25% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in Indianola Hills, Des Moines
A household needs to earn about $49,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Indianola Hills, Des Moines home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $68,711, 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 Indianola Hills, Des Moines' effective rate of 1.71%, 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 5 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Indianola Hills, Des Moines
Indianola Hills, Des Moines 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 Indianola Hills, Des Moines.
Who works in Indianola Hills, Des Moines, and how
Work in Indianola Hills, Des Moines centers on construction and retail trade. Unemployment is low, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 77%
- Work from home 12%
- Transit, walk, or bike 10%
Life in Indianola Hills, Des Moines
Indianola Hills, Des Moines has more parkland per resident than 87% of neighborhoods. That concentrates in some parts of Indianola Hills, Des Moines and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in Indianola Hills, Des Moines, month by month
Indianola Hills, Des Moines sees roughly 82 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 88 degrees. January highs sit near 34, with lows near 15. The comfortable stretch runs May, June, August, and September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 34° | 23° | 15° |
| April | 66° | 51° | 39° |
| July | 88° | 77° | 66° |
| October | 68° | 54° | 43° |
Flying in and out of Indianola Hills, Des Moines
The nearest airport, Des Moines International, is about 3 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Eppley Airfield, about 120 miles away.
The best schools in and around Indianola Hills, Des Moines
Schools across Indianola Hills, Des Moines average a B−, better than 62% of neighborhoods.
Top elementary schools
- Walnut Street SchoolC+ · 39% proficient
- Howe ElementaryC · 35% proficient
- Park Ave Elementary SchoolC · 33% proficient
Top middle schools
- Brody Middle SchoolB · 46% proficient
- Weeks Middle SchoolB− · 41% proficient
Top high schools
- Lincoln High SchoolB · 48% proficient
- East High SchoolB− · 42% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Indianola Hills, Des Moines school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Indianola Hills, 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 Indianola Hills, Des Moines against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Common questions about living in Indianola Hills, Des Moines
Is Indianola Hills, Des Moines a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Indianola Hills, Des Moines ranks 3,410th of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on state finances, tree cover, and affordable childcare, and lowest on distance from a big city and property taxes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Indianola Hills, Des Moines expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $165,401. The overall cost of living runs about 22% below the national average. Set against a $68,711 median income, cost of living beats 62% of neighborhoods.
Is Indianola Hills, Des Moines safe?
Yes, Indianola Hills, Des Moines is safer than 62% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $374 per resident a year.
Compare Indianola Hills, Des Moines with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Indianola Hills, Des Moines. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Indianola Hills, 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.
Indianola Hills, Des Moines detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Indianola Hills, Des Moines: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Indianola Hills, Des Moines: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Indianola Hills, Des Moines: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Indianola Hills, Des Moines: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Indianola Hills, 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.