What is the Best Neighborhoods USA ranking for Merle Hay?
Merle Hay is ranked #19 of 60 eligible neighborhoods in Des Moines; #57 of 165 eligible neighborhoods in IA; and #5,704 of 14,967 eligible neighborhoods in the United States.
Neighborhood Profile
Merle Hay
Des Moines, IA | Polk County
Scored premium profile
Best Neighborhoods USA Index
55.1
Stability and Strength
52.5
Value Opportunity
66.5
Momentum
43.3
Score note: Rankings show denominators so users always see the size of the eligible cohort.
| Context | Value |
|---|---|
| Location | Des Moines, IA |
| County | Polk County |
| National rank | #5,704 of 14,967 |
| State rank | #57 of 165 |
| City rank | #19 of 60 |
| County rank | #19 of 60 |
| National percentile | 61.9 |
| National band | MIDDLE_50_PERCENT |
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Housing and local fundamentals
| Housing and market metrics | Value |
|---|---|
| Current Zillow home value | $220,706 |
| Year-over-year home value change | 1.0% |
| Month-over-month home value change | -0.34% |
| Home value to income ratio | 2.86 |
| Median household income | $77,044 |
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 35.7% |
| Civilian unemployment rate | 4.9% |
| Homeownership rate | 75.9% |
| Housing vacancy rate | 4.3% |
| Rent burden 30% or higher | 56.4% |
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 Merle Hay
Is Merle Hay one of the best neighborhoods in Des Moines?
Merle Hay has a Best Neighborhoods USA Index of 55.1 and a city ranking of #19 of 60 eligible neighborhoods in Des Moines.
How much are homes worth in Merle Hay?
The current Zillow Home Value Index for Merle Hay is approximately $220,706.
Are home values rising or falling in Merle Hay?
Zillow neighborhood values changed 1.0% year over year and -0.34% month over month.
What is the Neighborhood Momentum Score for Merle Hay?
Merle Hay has a Neighborhood Momentum Score of 43.3. Momentum is 70% year-over-year and 30% month-over-month Zillow housing change.
What is the median household income in Merle Hay?
The NDS-derived neighborhood median household income is approximately $77,044.
How affordable is Merle Hay relative to household income?
The current Zillow home-value-to-household-income ratio is 2.86. Price-to-income affordability is a major Value Opportunity input.
Is Merle Hay primarily homeowners or renters?
The NDS-derived homeownership rate is approximately 75.9%.
What is the unemployment rate in Merle Hay?
The NDS-derived civilian unemployment rate is approximately 4.9%.
How educated are residents of Merle Hay?
Approximately 35.7% of residents age 25 and older are estimated to have a bachelor's degree or higher.
What share of renters in Merle Hay face high rent burden?
Approximately 56.4% 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 Merle Hay?
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 applications516
Estimated originations351
Home-purchase applications273
Origination rate68.1%
Home-purchase share53.0%
Average application loan$147,039
Total application loan amount$75,871,004
National application rank#528 of 14,874 rankable neighborhoods
Geometry coverage100.0%
Recent trend: Applications 18.7% YoY; originations 26.7% 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.