ZIP 50266 presents a narrow decision question: how does its current broad asking-rent benchmark compare with separate survey and administrative measures, and what do local renter and vacancy counts add without describing an individual home? Zillow’s June 2026 ZORI is $1,380 per month, following a 2.28% year-over-year increase. This five-digit ZIP label is both a Zillow ZIP market identifier and a match to a Census ZCTA; a ZCTA is a statistical area and is not identical to a USPS delivery ZIP. The index gives a current local asking-rent signal, but it does not identify a building, lease term, bedroom count, or available unit. The useful question is therefore about alignment among benchmarks rather than a conclusion about a specific unit.
ZORI is a typical observed asking-rent index blended across rental types, which is a distinct universe from the matched Census ZCTA ACS 2024 five-year survey. ACS reports median gross rent of $1,331 among occupied renter homes, and gross rent includes selected utilities. ZORI is 3.7% higher than the ACS median, but that is a cross-source comparison rather than evidence of a change in either series or a lease-level gap. In a third universe, the FY2026 HUD FMR/SAFMR is an administrative, bedroom-specific standard, not asking rent; its two-bedroom figure is $1,590, and ZORI is 13.2% below that standard. Neither level should be treated as a replacement for the other when evaluating a property.
Stock counts describe the matched ZCTA’s housing inventory, not a list of units presently offered. Of 18,568 housing units, 17,459 were occupied and 1,109 were vacant, yielding a 6.0% all-housing vacancy rate. The stated vacancy composition includes 557 units for rent, 154 seasonal units, and 10 units for sale; the packet does not itemize the remaining vacant statuses. This division can frame the mix of recorded vacancy, but it neither establishes current availability nor shows tenant turnover, rent pressure, or condition at a particular property. The counts also do not say whether a listed unit is among vacant homes or whether any vacancy can be leased on a given date. Recorded vacancy is a status classification, so it is not a measure of lease-ready inventory.
Bedroom detail is created by a transparent scaling exercise, not observed in ZORI. Each local modelled monthly estimate scales the ZIP ZORI by the corresponding local HUD standard relative to the local two-bedroom HUD standard. The resulting modelled estimates are $1,111 for a studio, $1,163 for one bedroom, $1,380 for two bedrooms, $1,875 for three bedrooms, and $1,927 for four bedrooms. They preserve the local HUD ladder’s relative bedroom pattern while setting the level to the ZIP index. They are modelled estimates, never measured bedroom rents, and cannot reveal listing counts, utility treatment, concessions, condition, or the range of rents within any bedroom group. Scaling does not add new observations to either source.
Income and burden require another separation. The ACS ZCTA median household income is $87,025, with a $2,948 margin of error. At the current monthly index, the 30% required-income screen produces $55,200 in annual household income; this is arithmetic, not advice and not an applicant qualification rule. The survey counts 8,773 renter-occupied homes, equal to a 50.2% renter share of occupied homes. It also records 3,455 renter households spending at least 30% of income on gross rent, a 39.4% observed burden share; the affected-household count has a $580 margin of error. These population estimates do not prove burden, affordability, or eligibility for a particular unit or household. The income and burden series also use different household concepts and should not be combined mechanically.
For wider context only, West Des Moines city context has a $1,369 rent benchmark; Dallas County context has a $1,546 rent benchmark; and Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA metro context has a $1,310 rent benchmark. The ZIP asking-rent index is above the city and metro benchmarks but below the county benchmark. These are broader-scope comparisons, not ZIP results. The supplied metro apartment-vacancy series is not interchangeable with the ZIP’s all-housing vacancy measure, because the scopes and measure definitions differ. Context locates the ZIP within wider readings but does not transfer a city, county, or metro result into the ZIP. Context also does not change the separate Zillow, ACS, and HUD meanings.
All measures have different dates, populations, and construction: ZORI is an index, ACS is a five-year survey with sampling error, and HUD is an administrative standard. The data do not state the advertised amount, bedroom count, utilities, lease length, concession, occupancy date, condition, or availability of any specific property. Property-level verification consists of comparing the live advertised asking rent with the stated bedroom configuration, identifying which utilities are included, confirming lease and move-in timing, recording concessions separately, and establishing whether the unit is actually available. Keep the required-income arithmetic separate from underwriting, eligibility, and any unit-specific conclusion.
","findings":[{"body":"Zillow supplies an asking-rent index in the ZIP market, while ACS describes gross rent across occupied renter households in the matched statistical area. The difference between those series is informative only when utilities, survey timing, and rental-type coverage stay visible. It cannot characterize a listing or establish that a current asking rent changed relative to surveyed tenants.","title":"The primary rent comparison is a definition check"},{"body":"All bedroom figures are modelled from the ZIP index and the relative HUD ladder. They translate a broad blended index into a consistent bedroom pattern, but are not observations of advertised studio, one-bedroom, or larger-unit rents. Listing availability, lease terms, concessions, utilities, and condition can move an actual property away from the modelled amount.","title":"Bedroom amounts are scaling outputs"},{"body":"The income, renter-share, and burden results describe households captured by the ACS survey, including uncertainty in reported estimates. The required-income calculation simply applies a fixed rent-to-income fraction to the index. Neither that arithmetic nor the observed burden share determines what any household can pay, qualifies for, or experiences in a given unit.","title":"Population affordability evidence is broad, not transactional"},{"body":"Recorded vacancy separates for-rent, seasonal, and for-sale statuses within the housing inventory. This helps distinguish the vacancy categories represented in the data, but it does not show which addresses are marketed today, how long they have been empty, what rents are sought, or whether a particular unit is ready for occupancy.","title":"Vacancy is a composition measure"}],"risks":["The Zillow index is blended across rental types and does not identify a bedroom count, property condition, lease duration, included utilities, concession, or actual availability for any listing.","The matched ZCTA is a Census statistical geography, not a USPS delivery ZIP, so address-level inclusion and data assignment cannot be assumed solely from the five-digit label.","HUD figures are standards set by administrative program methodology. They can anchor a modelled ladder, yet they do not establish advertised rents, landlord pricing, utility inclusion, or eligibility at a specific property.","The vacancy and burden figures are aggregate survey measures. Applying either to an individual listing or applicant would overlook timing, household circumstances, lease terms, and unit-level differences."],"qa":[{"a":"It is a ZIP-level ZORI, meaning a typical observed asking-rent index blended across rental types. It is useful for a current market signal and for consistent comparison, but it does not provide an advertised rent for a particular address, bedroom count, lease term, condition, concession package, or availability date.","q":"What does the current Zillow rent figure measure?"},{"a":"ACS is a five-year survey of occupied renter homes in the matched ZCTA, and its gross-rent concept includes selected utilities. ZORI is a current asking-rent index that blends rental types. Different timing, populations, and rent definitions make their comparison descriptive rather than a direct, like-for-like lease comparison.","q":"Why is ACS median gross rent not a substitute for ZORI?"},{"a":"The estimates apply each local HUD bedroom standard relative to the local two-bedroom HUD standard, then scale that relationship to the ZIP ZORI. This retains the HUD ladder’s shape at the ZIP index level. It is a modelled calculation, not a measured set of rents drawn from listings or lease records.","q":"How were the bedroom estimates created?"},{"a":"Match the address to the intended geography, then verify the live asking rent, bedroom configuration, included utilities, lease duration, concessions, move-in date, and actual availability. Those property facts determine comparability with a broad index. Survey burden, vacancy categories, and HUD standards should remain context rather than property-specific proof.","q":"What checks are necessary before using this ZIP analysis for a specific property?"}],"sources":[{"key":"apartment_list_time_on_market","name":"Apartment List Time on Market — listing liquidity","release":"Apartment List 2026-07","pulledAt":"2026-08-08","url":"https://www.apartmentlist.com/research/category/data-rent-estimates"},{"key":"apartment_list_vacancy","name":"Apartment List Vacancy Index — rental vacancy","release":"Apartment List 2026-07","pulledAt":"2026-08-08","url":"https://www.apartmentlist.com/research/apartment-list-vacancy-index-methodology"},{"key":"census_zcta_facts","name":"Census ACS five-year — ZCTA housing and income","release":"ACS 2024 5-year ZCTA","pulledAt":"2026-08-08","url":"https://api.census.gov/data/2024/acs/acs5.html"},{"key":"hud_zip","name":"HUD USPS crosswalk and Small Area FMRs — ZIP rent fallback","release":"ZIP-CBSA 2025Q4 + SAFMR 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