5 census tracts · pop 20,903 · pop-weighted Eviction Risk Score 3.6/10
· range 3–4.7
Merle Hay spans 5 census tracts of Des Moines, IA, population 20,903. That produces an Eviction Risk Score of 3.6/10, Lower tier. Cost burden runs 40% against 29.6% citywide, putting Merle Hay 10.7% over its own city.
19% are severely burdened, paying half their income or more in rent. That cohort has no absorption capacity for an unexpected bill, and it is where non-payment filings originate. Scores across the 5 constituent tracts range from 3 to 4.7. A 1.7-point internal spread means block-level underwriting beats area-level here.
The clearest offset is economic stress, at 2.3/10. Running cool is eviction-process difficulty, at 2.5/10. Filings are well documented here: 817 across 4 observed tracts.
The worst year on record was 2015, when filings touched 9.4% of renter households. Average gross rent is $1,211, 11% above the Des Moines average of $1,090.
That places it #33 of 44 neighborhoods in Des Moines. Judgments average 1.8% of renter households a year, the share of filings that actually convert to an order.
For a like-for-like read, Meredith and East Village score within a fraction of it. Rent takes 19% of average household income, comfortably inside the 30% line and unusually low for a rental sub-market.
For a specific building, read the per-tract breakdown below rather than the 3.6 headline, because the internal range is too wide to average safely. Scores move when the ACS release, the court-record feed, or the statute ledger behind them moves.
Risk score
3.6
Lower
5 tracts · population-weighted
Merle Hay vs Des MoinesHow this neighborhood stacks against the citywide average
Single-parent HH, disability, language barriers, age 17- / 65+
Racial/ethnic minority41%ile
Hispanic + non-white share of population
Housing & transport68%ile
Multi-unit structures, mobile homes, crowding, no vehicle
Eviction filings · Princeton Eviction Lab
Court-record eviction history in Merle Hay
Aggregated across 4 validated constituent tracts. Filing rate is filings per 100 renter households, pop-weighted.
Historic baseline (2000–2018)
817Total filings (sum)
4.28%Avg annual filing rate
9.4%Peak year (2015)
5.24%Latest filed (2015)
CDC PLACES 2023 · pop-weighted
Eviction-adjacent indicators in Merle Hay
Average across all constituent tracts, population-weighted. Source: CDC PLACES (cwsq-ngmh) crude prevalence.
10.2%Housing insecurity
6.8%Utility shutoff threat
12.4%Food insecurity
10.2%SNAP enrollment
7.3%No health insurance
27.2%Any disability
Frequently asked
About Merle Hay
Q1
What is the eviction-risk score for Merle Hay?
Merle Hay scores 3.6/10 (Lower tier) across 5 census tracts. The pop-weighted Eviction Risk Score blends state law, county filing rates, parent-city politics, and tract-specific rent-to-income and poverty signals.
Q2
How does Merle Hay compare to Des Moines overall?
Merle Hay scores 0.2 points higher than Des Moines overall (3.4/10). Renters spend 40% of income on rent vs 30% citywide. Average rent: $1,211 vs $1,090.
Q3
What is the average rent in Merle Hay?
Average gross rent in Merle Hay is $1,211/month (pop-weighted across 5 census tracts, ACS 5-year 2023). 40% of renter households are cost-burdened.
Q4
What percentage of Merle Hay residents are renters?
35% of Merle Hay households are renter-occupied (vs 40% in Des Moines). The neighborhood has 20,903 residents.
Q5
Is Merle Hay a high social-vulnerability area?
Merle Hay sits in the 51st percentile nationally on the CDC Social Vulnerability Index (moderately vulnerable). The index combines poverty, unemployment, household composition, racial/ethnic minority share, and housing/transportation factors across all US census tracts.
Q6
Which tracts in Merle Hay have the highest eviction risk?
The highest-risk constituent tract in Merle Hay is census tract 19153000803 (score 4.7/10). Across the 5 tracts in this neighborhood the score ranges from 3 to 4.7, a spread of 1.7 points.
Q7
How safe is Merle Hay for landlords?
Merle Hay carries a lower-tier eviction-risk profile for landlords (3.6/10). Pop-weighted across 5 constituent tracts, the score blends parent-city rent-control posture, county eviction-process timelines, and tract-specific rent-to-income / poverty signals. Compared to Des Moines as a whole (3.4/10), this neighborhood is in line with the citywide level.
Q8
What is the demographic breakdown of Merle Hay?
Merle Hay has 21,050 residents. Top groups: White (non-Hispanic) (72.2%), Hispanic / Latino (10.9%), Black (non-Hispanic) (8.6%). Source: ACS 5-year 2023, table B03002.
