What is the Best Neighborhoods USA ranking for Happy Valley?
Happy Valley is ranked #6 of 35 eligible neighborhoods in Wilmington; #6 of 35 eligible neighborhoods in DE; and #2,361 of 14,967 eligible neighborhoods in the United States.
Neighborhood Profile
Happy Valley
Wilmington, DE | New Castle County
Scored premium profile
Best Neighborhoods USA Index
65.5
Stability and Strength
61.9
Value Opportunity
56.4
Momentum
84.1
Score note: Rankings show denominators so users always see the size of the eligible cohort.
| Context | Value |
|---|---|
| Location | Wilmington, DE |
| County | New Castle County |
| National rank | #2,361 of 14,967 |
| State rank | #6 of 35 |
| City rank | #6 of 35 |
| County rank | #6 of 35 |
| National percentile | 84.2 |
| National band | TOP_25_PERCENT |
Neighborhood Expert Opportunity
Become the Neighborhood Expert for this market
Inquire about this marketUnsold commercial placement. No local expert is currently assigned.
Housing and local fundamentals
| Housing and market metrics | Value |
|---|---|
| Current Zillow home value | $392,095 |
| Year-over-year home value change | 8.1% |
| Month-over-month home value change | 0.13% |
| Home value to income ratio | 5.75 |
| Median household income | $68,189 |
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 68.8% |
| Civilian unemployment rate | 0.6% |
| Homeownership rate | 42.1% |
| Housing vacancy rate | 7.8% |
| Rent burden 30% or higher | 37.2% |
How to read this profile
- Ranks are always shown with denominators.
- Momentum reflects both year-over-year and month-over-month housing change.
- Stability and Strength and Value Opportunity are governed composite scores.
- Identity composition is descriptive intelligence and is not a scoring component.
Questions and Answers
Questions About Living in Happy Valley
Is Happy Valley one of the best neighborhoods in Wilmington?
Happy Valley has a Best Neighborhoods USA Index of 65.5 and a city ranking of #6 of 35 eligible neighborhoods in Wilmington.
How much are homes worth in Happy Valley?
The current Zillow Home Value Index for Happy Valley is approximately $392,095.
Are home values rising or falling in Happy Valley?
Zillow neighborhood values changed 8.1% year over year and 0.13% month over month.
What is the Neighborhood Momentum Score for Happy Valley?
Happy Valley has a Neighborhood Momentum Score of 84.1. Momentum is 70% year-over-year and 30% month-over-month Zillow housing change.
What is the median household income in Happy Valley?
The NDS-derived neighborhood median household income is approximately $68,189.
How affordable is Happy Valley relative to household income?
The current Zillow home-value-to-household-income ratio is 5.75. Price-to-income affordability is a major Value Opportunity input.
Is Happy Valley primarily homeowners or renters?
The NDS-derived homeownership rate is approximately 42.1%.
What is the unemployment rate in Happy Valley?
The NDS-derived civilian unemployment rate is approximately 0.6%.
How educated are residents of Happy Valley?
Approximately 68.8% of residents age 25 and older are estimated to have a bachelor's degree or higher.
What share of renters in Happy Valley face high rent burden?
Approximately 37.2% of the applicable renter-household universe is estimated to spend 30% or more of household income on gross rent.
How does Best Neighborhoods USA score Happy Valley?
The overall index combines 40% Stability and Strength, 35% Value Opportunity, and 25% Momentum. Race, ethnicity, and identity composition are not scoring components.
Governed ranking context
How this neighborhood ranks
HMDA Mortgage Intelligence
Neighborhood Mortgage Market
Modeled neighborhood-level mortgage activity allocated from governed HMDA tract data using Zillow neighborhood geometry. These neighborhood values are nonadditive and do not enter the Best Neighborhoods USA Index.
Activity year2024
Estimated applications15
Estimated originations8
Home-purchase applications8
Origination rate51.2%
Home-purchase share55.4%
Average application loan$196,067
Total application loan amount$2,997,761
National application rank#11,421 of 14,874 rankable neighborhoods
Geometry coverage100.0%
Recent trend: Applications 8.1% YoY; originations -20.2% YoY
Mortgage methodology
HMDA is natively reported at tract and other lender-reporting geographies, not Zillow neighborhood or ZIP geography. This module uses the certified NDS HMDA-to-Zillow tract-vintage crosswalk and area-weighted allocation. Rankings require governed geometry coverage. Applicant demographics are excluded. Neighborhood values may overlap and must not be summed to reconstruct ZIP or national totals.