Best PlacesSouthwestern Hills, Des Moines, IA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Southwestern Hills, 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.
Southwestern Hills, Des Moines ranks 1,161st of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on state finances by a wide margin, and walkability ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in Southwestern 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.
Southwestern Hills, Des Moines' strengths and weaknesses
Where Southwestern Hills, Des Moines ranks high
- State fiscal healthBetter than 97% of neighborhoods
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than 94% of neighborhoods
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 93% of neighborhoods
- Cheap childcare$776 a month, better than 92% of neighborhoods
- Crime safetyBetter than 91% of neighborhoods
Where Southwestern Hills, Des Moines ranks low
- WalkabilityBetter than only 5% of neighborhoods
- Low property taxBetter than only 7% of neighborhoods
- Big-city accessBetter than only 8% of neighborhoods
- BikingBetter than only 14% of neighborhoods
- Cell coverageBetter than only 16% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in Southwestern Hills, Des Moines
A household needs to earn about $100,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Southwestern Hills, Des Moines home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $105,186, 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 Southwestern Hills, 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 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 Southwestern Hills, Des Moines
Southwestern Hills, Des Moines's age mix sits close to the national median, 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 Southwestern Hills, Des Moines.
Who works in Southwestern Hills, Des Moines, and how
Work in Southwestern Hills, Des Moines centers on finance & insurance and health care & social. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 83%
- Work from home 15%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in Southwestern Hills, Des Moines
Southwestern Hills, Des Moines has more restaurants and bars per resident than 67% of neighborhoods. That concentrates in some parts of Southwestern Hills, Des Moines and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in Southwestern Hills, Des Moines, month by month
Southwestern 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 Southwestern Hills, Des Moines
The nearest airport, Des Moines International, is about 1 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Eppley Airfield, about 117 miles away.
The best schools in and around Southwestern Hills, Des Moines
Schools across Southwestern Hills, Des Moines average a B, better than 77% of neighborhoods.
Top elementary schools
- Jordan Creek Elementary SchoolA · 69% proficient
- Jefferson Elementary SchoolA− · 58% proficient
- Wright Elementary SchoolB− · 42% proficient
Top middle schools
- Stilwell Junior High SchoolA+ · 70% proficient
- Brody Middle SchoolB · 46% proficient
Top high schools
- Valley High SchoolA · 75% proficient
- Lincoln High SchoolB · 48% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Southwestern Hills, Des Moines school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Southwestern 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 Southwestern Hills, Des Moines against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Common questions about living in Southwestern Hills, Des Moines
Is Southwestern Hills, Des Moines a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Southwestern Hills, Des Moines ranks 1,161st of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on state finances, cheap car insurance, and what local pay buys, and lowest on walkability and property taxes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Southwestern Hills, Des Moines expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $336,554. The overall cost of living runs about 20% below the national average. Set against a $105,186 median income, cost of living beats 93% of neighborhoods.
Is Southwestern Hills, Des Moines safe?
Yes, Southwestern Hills, Des Moines is safer than 91% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $236 per resident a year.
Compare Southwestern Hills, Des Moines with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Southwestern Hills, Des Moines. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Southwestern 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.
Southwestern Hills, Des Moines detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Southwestern Hills, Des Moines: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Southwestern Hills, Des Moines: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Southwestern Hills, Des Moines: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Southwestern Hills, Des Moines: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Southwestern 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.