Best PlacesWachter's, Bismarck, ND Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Wachter's, Bismarck, 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.
Wachter's, Bismarck ranks 1,581st of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on a stable housing market by a wide margin, and distance from a big city ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in Wachter's, Bismarck
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.
Wachter's, Bismarck's strengths and weaknesses
Where Wachter's, Bismarck ranks high
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 97% of neighborhoods
- Short commute17.4 minutes each way, better than 92% of neighborhoods
- Low vacancyBetter than 86% of neighborhoods
- Crime safetyBetter than 86% of neighborhoods
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than 85% of neighborhoods
Where Wachter's, Bismarck ranks low
- Big-city accessBetter than only 1% of neighborhoods
- TransitBetter than only 5% of neighborhoods
- Internet speedBetter than only 10% of neighborhoods
- Tree shadeBetter than only 24% of neighborhoods
- School gradeC, better than only 36% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in Wachter's, Bismarck
A household needs to earn about $68,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Wachter's, Bismarck home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $77,044, 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 Wachter's, Bismarck's effective rate of 0.96%, 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 Wachter's, Bismarck
Wachter's, Bismarck'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 Wachter's, Bismarck.
Who works in Wachter's, Bismarck, and how
Work in Wachter's, Bismarck centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment is low, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 90%
- Work from home 3%
- Transit, walk, or bike 7%
Life in Wachter's, Bismarck
Wachter's, Bismarck has more restaurants and bars per resident than 85% of neighborhoods. That concentrates in some parts of Wachter's, Bismarck and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in Wachter's, Bismarck, month by month
Wachter's, Bismarck sees roughly 122 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 89 degrees. January highs sit near 28, with lows near 5. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 28° | 15° | 5° |
| April | 57° | 42° | 28° |
| July | 89° | 73° | 58° |
| October | 61° | 46° | 33° |
Flying in and out of Wachter's, Bismarck
The nearest airport, Bismarck Municipal, is about 2 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Minneapolis-St Paul International/Wold-Chamberlain, about 387 miles away.
The best schools in and around Wachter's, Bismarck
Schools across Wachter's, Bismarck average a C, better than 36% of neighborhoods.
Top elementary schools
- Victor Solheim Elementary SchoolA− · 60% proficient
- Dorothy Moses Elementary SchoolC · 32% proficient
- Jeannette Myhre Elementary SchoolD · 20% proficient
Top middle schools
- Wachter Middle SchoolC+ · 36% proficient
Top high schools
- South Central Alternative High SchoolD+ · 25% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Wachter's, Bismarck school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Wachter's, Bismarck 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 Wachter's, Bismarck against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Common questions about living in Wachter's, Bismarck
Is Wachter's, Bismarck a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Wachter's, Bismarck ranks 1,581st of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on a stable housing market, short commutes, and few empty homes, and lowest on distance from a big city and transit. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Wachter's, Bismarck expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $254,950. The overall cost of living runs about 14% below the national average. Set against a $77,044 median income, cost of living beats 61% of neighborhoods.
Is Wachter's, Bismarck safe?
Yes, Wachter's, Bismarck is safer than 86% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $369 per resident a year.
Compare Wachter's, Bismarck with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Wachter's, Bismarck. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Wachter's, Bismarck 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.
Wachter's, Bismarck detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Wachter's, Bismarck: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Wachter's, Bismarck: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Wachter's, Bismarck: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Wachter's, Bismarck: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Wachter's, Bismarck 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.