What is the Best Neighborhoods USA ranking for Historic Old Town?
Historic Old Town is ranked #10 of 18 eligible neighborhoods in Ames; #40 of 165 eligible neighborhoods in IA; and #3,715 of 14,967 eligible neighborhoods in the United States.
Neighborhood Profile
Historic Old Town
Ames, IA | Story County
Scored premium profile
Best Neighborhoods USA Index
61.0
Stability and Strength
60.5
Value Opportunity
64.8
Momentum
56.3
Score note: Rankings show denominators so users always see the size of the eligible cohort.
| Context | Value |
|---|---|
| Location | Ames, IA |
| County | Story County |
| National rank | #3,715 of 14,967 |
| State rank | #40 of 165 |
| City rank | #10 of 18 |
| County rank | #10 of 18 |
| National percentile | 75.2 |
| National band | TOP_25_PERCENT |
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Housing and local fundamentals
| Housing and market metrics | Value |
|---|---|
| Current Zillow home value | $265,301 |
| Year-over-year home value change | 1.0% |
| Month-over-month home value change | 0.16% |
| Home value to income ratio | 4.21 |
| Median household income | $63,037 |
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 69.1% |
| Civilian unemployment rate | 0.7% |
| Homeownership rate | 37.2% |
| Housing vacancy rate | 7.6% |
| Rent burden 30% or higher | 29.9% |
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 Historic Old Town
Is Historic Old Town one of the best neighborhoods in Ames?
Historic Old Town has a Best Neighborhoods USA Index of 61.0 and a city ranking of #10 of 18 eligible neighborhoods in Ames.
How much are homes worth in Historic Old Town?
The current Zillow Home Value Index for Historic Old Town is approximately $265,301.
Are home values rising or falling in Historic Old Town?
Zillow neighborhood values changed 1.0% year over year and 0.16% month over month.
What is the Neighborhood Momentum Score for Historic Old Town?
Historic Old Town has a Neighborhood Momentum Score of 56.3. Momentum is 70% year-over-year and 30% month-over-month Zillow housing change.
What is the median household income in Historic Old Town?
The NDS-derived neighborhood median household income is approximately $63,037.
How affordable is Historic Old Town relative to household income?
The current Zillow home-value-to-household-income ratio is 4.21. Price-to-income affordability is a major Value Opportunity input.
Is Historic Old Town primarily homeowners or renters?
The NDS-derived homeownership rate is approximately 37.2%.
What is the unemployment rate in Historic Old Town?
The NDS-derived civilian unemployment rate is approximately 0.7%.
How educated are residents of Historic Old Town?
Approximately 69.1% of residents age 25 and older are estimated to have a bachelor's degree or higher.
What share of renters in Historic Old Town face high rent burden?
Approximately 29.9% 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 Historic Old Town?
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 applications5
Estimated originations4
Home-purchase applications3
Origination rate69.8%
Home-purchase share61.3%
Average application loan$145,000
Total application loan amount$778,457
National application rank#13,661 of 14,874 rankable neighborhoods
Geometry coverage100.0%
Recent trend: Applications -3.6% YoY; originations -11.9% 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.