Within parent city
87
th percentile
High
Census Tract · Ranked #58,384 of 84,120 nationally
West Des Moines Eviction Risk: Lower
Tract 19153011114 · Polk County, IA · pop 3,836
How risky is West Des Moines in Polk County for landlords? Census tract 19153011114 scores 5.3/10, the Moderate tier. That is riskier than roughly 50% of the 84,120 US census tracts we score.
About 32% of renters carry a rent burden of 30% of income or higher, a high level, and 21% are severely burdened at 50% or more. Average rent runs $1,229 a month against an average household income of $60,600 a year, roughly 24% of income at the averages. About 72% of occupied units are renter-occupied, a renter-majority tract.
Risk score
3
Lower
Confidence 100% · 1–10 scale
Household mix · 100 hh
Burdened renters 23%
Stable renters 49%
Owners 28%
Tract context
Occupied units2,528
Renter share72.1%
SVI overall0.28
Poverty rate9.8%
Median income$60,600
Percentile rank
Higher percentile = riskier than more peers.Within county
49
th percentile
Moderate
Within state
47
th percentile
Moderate
National
31
th percentile
Low
Geographic context
Risk heat across West Des Moines and the region
Centroid at 41.5937, -93.7564 · click any tract to drill in
Why West Des Moines scores 3
9 axes · 1 = landlord-friendlyLocal political climate
Inherited from West Des Moines
6.2
Regional political climate
2024 county presidential margin
5.8
State political climate
Iowa legislature & governorship
2.3
Economic stress
9.8% poverty · this tract
2.4
Supply constraint
$1,229 rent vs county FMR
5.1
Rent control risk
Inherited from West Des Moines
4.3
Eviction process difficulty
State law sets the calendar
2.0
Tenant organizing strength
Inherited from West Des Moines
8.5
Housing court bias
Inherited from West Des Moines
4.2
How West Des Moines compares
Risk score vs. parent city, county, state.CDC Social Vulnerability Index
SVI percentile: 28
CDC/ATSDR 2022. Higher = more vulnerable. National percentile across 84k tracts.
- 35%Socioeconomic
- 18%Household composition
- 29%Racial/ethnic minority
- 41%Housing & transportation
Eviction filings
Court-record eviction history
Court-validated eviction filings collected from county clerks and consolidated by the Eviction Lab at Princeton University. Filing rate is filings per 100 renter households.1
Historic baseline (2000–2018)
- 1,212Total filings over 10 yrs
- 8.53%Avg annual filing rate
- 16.9%Peak (2014)
- 203Filings in 2015 (latest validated)
Filings climbed 107% over the past 10 months.
Comparable tracts
Census tracts with similar eviction risk
Closest by Eviction Risk Score.
CDC PLACES 2023 · health & economic stress
Eviction-adjacent indicators
Crude prevalence of conditions linked to housing loss. Source: CDC PLACES (cwsq-ngmh), 2023 model-based small-area estimates.
- 10.8%Housing insecurity
- 7.2%Utility-shutoff threat
- 12.8%Food insecurity
- 10.5%SNAP enrollment
- 7.6%Transit barriers
- 7.4%No health insurance
- 18.0%Frequent mental distress
- 26.6%Any disability
Analysis
What drives eviction risk in West Des Moines
What moves this score most is tenant organizing strength at 8.5/10. That part comes from the wider legal climate rather than the tract itself. Statewide and court-level factors such as eviction-process speed and rent-control exposure are inherited from West Des Moines eviction risk, while the economic and supply signals are measured at the tract level.
Set against its neighbors, this tract scores about the same as the Polk County average of 5.0 and above the Iowa statewide average of 4.3. Within its own county it reads on the riskier side for landlords.
The tract is predominantly White and ranks around the 28th percentile nationally on the CDC Social Vulnerability Index, a measure of how exposed residents are to housing and economic shocks. That is a relatively low-vulnerability reading.
Princeton's Eviction Lab logged 1,212 eviction filings here over 10 tracked years, with about 8.5% of renter households facing a filing in a typical year. Filings peaked at 16.9% of renter households in 2014.
For a landlord, conditions here are middle-of-the-road. Standard screening and prompt, documented notices usually keep cases short.
Frequently asked
About tract 19153011114
Q1
What is the eviction-risk score for census tract 19153011114?
Census tract 19153011114 in West Des Moines scores 3/10 (Lower tier). The Eviction Risk Score blends state law, county filing rates, parent-city politics, and tract-specific rent-to-income ratios + poverty signals.
Q2
What is the average rent in tract 19153011114?
Median gross rent is $1,229/month (ACS 5-year 2023, table B25064). 32% of renter households are cost-burdened.
Q3
What is the poverty rate in tract 19153011114?
9.8% of residents in tract 19153011114 live below the federal poverty line (ACS B17001, 2023). Population: 3,836.
Q4
How socially vulnerable is tract 19153011114?
CDC Social Vulnerability Index ranks this tract in the 28th percentile nationally. Sub-themes: socioeconomic 35th, household 18th, minority 29th, housing 41th.
Q5
How many evictions are filed each year in tract 19153011114?
Princeton Eviction Lab recorded 1,212 eviction filings across 10 validated years in tract 19153011114 (2000-2018). The average annual filing rate is 8.53% of renter households, peaking at 16.9% in 2014. Source: Eviction Lab tract-validated 2024 release.
Q6
What share of households in tract 19153011114 struggle to pay rent?
About 10.8% of adults in this tract reported housing insecurity (could not pay rent or mortgage in the past 12 months), per the CDC PLACES 2023 model-based small-area estimate. 7.2% also reported utility shutoff threats, a frequent precursor to eviction filings.
Q7
How does tract 19153011114 compare to West Des Moines overall?
Tract 19153011114 scores 3/10, higher than the parent city of West Des Moines at 2.3/10. City-scale signals (state law, local rent controls, court bias) are inherited from West Des Moines eviction risk; what makes this tract different are its tract-specific economic stress and supply-constraint sub-scores.
Sibling tracts
Highest-risk tracts in West Des Moines
Top eight tracts in West Des Moines ranked by composite eviction-risk score.
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