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Census Tract · Ranked #79,124 of 84,120 nationally

West Des Moines Eviction Risk: Lower

Tract 19153011021 · Polk County, IA · pop 5,047

West Des Moines is where census tract 19153011021 sits, home to 5,047 residents. Its landlord eviction-risk score is $1/10. It lands near the 39th percentile nationally for landlord eviction risk.

27% of renter households here spend at least 30% of income on rent, a moderate level, and 7% are severely burdened at 50% or more. The typical renter pays about $1,460 a month while the average household earns $112,045 a year, roughly 16% of income at the averages. About 15% of occupied units are renter-occupied.

Risk score
1.5
Lower
Confidence 100% · 1–10 scale
Household mix · 100 hh
Burdened renters 4% Stable renters 11% Owners 85%
Tract context
Occupied units2,000
Renter share15.3%
SVI overall0.03
Poverty rate2.6%
Median income$112,045

Percentile rank

Higher percentile = riskier than more peers.
Within parent city
7 th percentile
Rank, 7th percentileLowHigh
#15 of 16 tracts In West Des Moines
Very Low
Within county
13 th percentile
Rank, 13th percentileLowHigh
#98 of 112 tracts In Polk County
Very Low
Within state
4 th percentile
Rank, 4th percentileLowHigh
#864 of 896 tracts In Iowa
Very Low
National
6 th percentile
Rank, 6th percentileLowHigh
#79,124 of 84,120 tracts In U.S.
Very Low
Geographic context

Risk heat across West Des Moines and the region

Centroid at 41.5767, -93.7465 · click any tract to drill in

Why West Des Moines scores 1.5

9 axes · 1 = landlord-friendly
Local 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
2.6% poverty · this tract
1.0
Supply constraint
$1,460 rent vs county FMR
7.0
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.
West Des Moines risk score vs. parent city / county / stateThis tract: 1.51.5This tracttract 011021West Des Moines: 2.32.3West Des Moinesparent cityCounty: 3.23.2Countyavg tract in countyState: 3.33.3Stateavg tract in state
CDC Social Vulnerability Index

SVI percentile: 3

CDC/ATSDR 2022. Higher = more vulnerable. National percentile across 84k tracts.

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)

  • 34Total filings over 10 yrs
  • 1.74%Avg annual filing rate
  • 3.1%Peak (2015)
  • 7Filings in 2015 (latest validated)
Filings by year 2006 to 2015
Year-by-year eviction filings in tract 191530110212006: 4 filings (2.34/100 renter HHs)2007: 5 filings (2.92/100 renter HHs)2008: 4 filings (2.34/100 renter HHs)2009: 3 filings (1.75/100 renter HHs)2010: 2 filings (0.95/100 renter HHs)2011: 2 filings (0.89/100 renter HHs)2012: 1 filings (0.45/100 renter HHs)2013: 2 filings (0.89/100 renter HHs)2014: 4 filings (1.79/100 renter HHs)2015: 7 filings (3.12/100 renter HHs)
Filings climbed 75% 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.

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.

Princeton's Eviction Lab logged 34 eviction filings here over 10 tracked years, with about 1.7% of renter households facing a filing in a typical year. Filings peaked at 3.1% of renter households in 2015.

In CDC survey modeling, about 6.7% of adults here said they could not pay rent or mortgage at some point in the past year, and 4.3% faced a utility shutoff threat, a common early warning before a filing.

For a landlord, conditions here are middle-of-the-road. Standard screening and prompt, documented notices usually keep cases short.

Frequently asked

About tract 19153011021

Q1

What is the eviction-risk score for census tract 19153011021?

Census tract 19153011021 in West Des Moines scores 1.5/10 (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 19153011021?

Median gross rent is $1,460/month (ACS 5-year 2023, table B25064). 27% of renter households are cost-burdened.
Q3

What is the poverty rate in tract 19153011021?

2.6% of residents in tract 19153011021 live below the federal poverty line (ACS B17001, 2023). Population: 5,047.
Q4

How socially vulnerable is tract 19153011021?

CDC Social Vulnerability Index ranks this tract in the 3th percentile nationally. Sub-themes: socioeconomic 3th, household 36th, minority 28th, housing 4th.
Q5

How many evictions are filed each year in tract 19153011021?

Princeton Eviction Lab recorded 34 eviction filings across 10 validated years in tract 19153011021 (2000-2018). The average annual filing rate is 1.74% of renter households, peaking at 3.1% in 2015. Source: Eviction Lab tract-validated 2024 release.
Q6

What share of households in tract 19153011021 struggle to pay rent?

About 6.7% 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. 4.3% also reported utility shutoff threats, a frequent precursor to eviction filings.
Q7

How does tract 19153011021 compare to West Des Moines overall?

Tract 19153011021 scores 1.5/10, lower 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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