Palo Alto County, Iowa

Palo Alto County has a population of 8,863 and has shrunk 1.1% since the 2020 census. The median home is worth $123,200, about 1.7 times the county's median household income of $72,781.

Home price
$123,200
Income
$72,781
Population
8,863
Unemployment
2.2%

Housing

Home values, rent, property taxes, insurance and how local prices relate to local incomes.

Median home price$123,200county
Median gross rent$638county
Median year homes here were built1958county
Share of homes built before 198076.2%county
Share of homes that are manufactured or mobile1.9%county
Share of homes that are vacant16.6%county
Share of occupied homes that are rented22.9%county
Share of homes held for seasonal or occasional use4.3%county
Typical monthly rent$1,176(statewide)
HUD fair market rent, 2-bed$919county
HUD fair market rent, 1-bed$700county
HUD fair market rent, 3-bed$1,222county
Home insurance / yr$2,902(statewide)

Money

Household earnings and buying power. Adjusted income restates local income using the statewide cost-of-living index.

Cost of living89.7(statewide)
Median household income$72,781county
Family health premium / yr$22,954(statewide)
Infant childcare / yr$9,605(statewide)
Regular gas price / gal$3.721(statewide)
Poverty rate11.6%county

Jobs

What people here do for work, who they work for, whether they work from home, and how much of the local economy sits in one industry.

Workers who work from home4.9%county
Unemployment rate2.2%county
Share of adults in the labor force67.2%county
Share of workers who are self-employed10.1%county
Share of workers employed by government11.1%county
Share of workers in the largest industry22.4%county
Economic output per resident$89,845county

Taxes

State tax rules that can affect take-home pay, investments and everyday purchases.

Property tax rate1.20%county
Top state income tax3.80%(statewide)
Capital gains tax3.80%(statewide)
Combined sales tax6.94%(statewide)

Transportation

Distance to air travel and how people get around locally. Distances are straight-line from the county's population-weighted centre, so driving is further.

Mean commute time17.2 mincounty
Miles to nearest airport with airline service46 micounty
Passengers boarding at the nearest airline airport7733county
Miles to nearest general aviation field1.0 micounty
Airports with airline service located here0county
General aviation airfields located here1county
Passenger train stations and the railway network0county
Miles to the nearest passenger rail station142 micounty
Households without a vehicle3.4%county
Traffic deaths45.1county
Change in traffic deaths per 100,000-3.6(statewide)

Schools

Public schools and colleges counted where they actually sit, plus the education level of adults who live here. Students per teacher is a staffing measure, not a quality ranking.

Adults 25+ with a bachelor's degree or higher19.0%county
Adults 25+ with a high school diploma or higher93.3%county
Public schools in the county10county
Public school enrollment1472county
Students per full-time teacher16.4county
Free lunch eligible41.1%county
Elementary schools3county
Middle schools3county
High schools4county
Institutions granting bachelor's degrees or above0county
Two-year institutions0county
Miles to the nearest bachelor's-granting institution41 micounty

Health

Primary care physicians45county
Medicare-certified hospitals in this county1county
Hospitals here with an emergency department1county
Average CMS star rating of hospitals here3(statewide)
Fine particulate matter7.1 µgcounty
Without health insurance4.8%county
Adults who were food insecure in the past year11.0%county
Adults who received food assistance in the past year9.4%county
Frequent mental distress14.0%county
No leisure-time physical activity25.6%county
Diagnosed diabetes12.2%county

Place

Who lives here and what the place is like: population, age, migration, safety and civic profile.

Population8,863county
Land area in square miles564county
People per square mile of land15.7county
Supermarkets and grocery stores3county
Convenience stores0county
Share living far from a food store5.3%county
Share living in a low-income, low-access tract0.0%county
Population change since 2020-1.1%county
Natural change per 1,000 residents-2county
Net international migration per 1,000 residents1county
Median age41.9 yrscounty
Share of residents under 1823.1%county
Share of residents 65 and over22.2%county
Share of households that are one person36.1%county
Share of residents born outside the United States2.5%county
Second languages3.7%county
Share of residents on a religious body’s rolls56.9%county
Congregations per 100,000 residents245county
Net domestic migration per 1,000 residents2county
Households that moved in189county
Households that moved away194county
Average income of arriving households$54,344county
Average income of departing households$51,892county
Homes authorised per 1,000 existing homes1county
Housing units authorised in the latest year6county
Share of permitted homes in multifamily buildings45.9%(statewide)
Violent crime rate243(statewide)

Weather

Measured annual temperature, precipitation and snowfall. These are climate facts, not a ranking.

Avg. annual temperature48.2°Fcounty
Annual precipitation30.7 incounty
Annual snowfall30.1 incounty
Average daily solar energy3.93 kWh/m²county
Days reaching 90°F9 dayscounty
Days at or below freezing137 dayscounty

Gardening

Plant hardiness zoneZone 5bcounty
Frost-free days164 dayscounty
Average last spring frostApr 28county
Average first fall frostOct 9county

Utilities

Average monthly electric bill$128county
Electric utilities serving this county3county
Electricity price per kWh13.8¢county
Household electricity use791 kWhcounty
Residential natural gas price$14.86(statewide)
Homes heated by electricity25.8%county
Homes heated by utility gas51.5%county
Homes heated by propane19.4%county
Homes heated by fuel oil0.8%county
Homes heated by wood0.6%county
Households with broadband89.8%county

Risk

Relative exposure to air pollution and natural hazards. Higher values indicate more measured risk, not a prediction.

Riverine flood risk9.0county
Coastal flood risk0.0county
Drought risk83.0county
Landslide risk16.3county
Hail risk77.7county
Earthquake risk6.2county
Tornado risk38.8county
Tropical cyclone risk0.0county
Extreme heat risk10.0county
Winter weather risk50.2county
Strong wind risk22.6county
Wildfire risk11.0county

Sports

Major pro teams based here0county
NFL teams based here0county
NBA teams based here0county
MLB teams based here0county
NHL teams based here0county
MLS soccer teams based here0county
Top-division college football teams0county
Second-tier college football teams0county
Affiliated minor league baseball teams0county
AHL teams based here0county
ECHL teams based here0county

Figures marked county are measured for Palo Alto County directly. The rest are published at state level only and show the Iowa figure — see methodology for each source and its limits.

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