What is the Best Neighborhoods USA ranking for Steel Lake?
Steel Lake is ranked #9 of 14 eligible neighborhoods in Federal Way; #394 of 533 eligible neighborhoods in WA; and #10,533 of 14,967 eligible neighborhoods in the United States.
Neighborhood Profile
Steel Lake
Federal Way, WA | King County
Scored premium profile
Best Neighborhoods USA Index
41.5
Stability and Strength
38.8
Value Opportunity
38.6
Momentum
50.1
Score note: Rankings show denominators so users always see the size of the eligible cohort.
| Context | Value |
|---|---|
| Location | Federal Way, WA |
| County | King County |
| National rank | #10,533 of 14,967 |
| State rank | #394 of 533 |
| City rank | #9 of 14 |
| County rank | #232 of 287 |
| National percentile | 29.6 |
| National band | MIDDLE_50_PERCENT |
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Housing and local fundamentals
| Housing and market metrics | Value |
|---|---|
| Current Zillow home value | $619,974 |
| Year-over-year home value change | 0.6% |
| Month-over-month home value change | 0.05% |
| Home value to income ratio | 7.47 |
| Median household income | $82,979 |
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 21.2% |
| Civilian unemployment rate | 6.6% |
| Homeownership rate | 41.5% |
| Housing vacancy rate | 2.5% |
| Rent burden 30% or higher | 66.2% |
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 Steel Lake
Is Steel Lake one of the best neighborhoods in Federal Way?
Steel Lake has a Best Neighborhoods USA Index of 41.5 and a city ranking of #9 of 14 eligible neighborhoods in Federal Way.
How much are homes worth in Steel Lake?
The current Zillow Home Value Index for Steel Lake is approximately $619,974.
Are home values rising or falling in Steel Lake?
Zillow neighborhood values changed 0.6% year over year and 0.05% month over month.
What is the Neighborhood Momentum Score for Steel Lake?
Steel Lake has a Neighborhood Momentum Score of 50.1. Momentum is 70% year-over-year and 30% month-over-month Zillow housing change.
What is the median household income in Steel Lake?
The NDS-derived neighborhood median household income is approximately $82,979.
How affordable is Steel Lake relative to household income?
The current Zillow home-value-to-household-income ratio is 7.47. Price-to-income affordability is a major Value Opportunity input.
Is Steel Lake primarily homeowners or renters?
The NDS-derived homeownership rate is approximately 41.5%.
What is the unemployment rate in Steel Lake?
The NDS-derived civilian unemployment rate is approximately 6.6%.
How educated are residents of Steel Lake?
Approximately 21.2% of residents age 25 and older are estimated to have a bachelor's degree or higher.
What share of renters in Steel Lake face high rent burden?
Approximately 66.2% 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 Steel Lake?
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 applications182
Estimated originations99
Home-purchase applications88
Origination rate54.5%
Home-purchase share48.3%
Average application loan$343,668
Total application loan amount$62,386,238
National application rank#2,356 of 14,874 rankable neighborhoods
Geometry coverage100.0%
Recent trend: Applications 6.2% YoY; originations 1.6% 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.