Living in Burlington, IA
Des Moines County
Burlington is a real, historic Mississippi River port city (population approximately 23,207, genuinely declining since the 2020 Census) that briefly served as the actual territorial capital -- first of Wisconsin Territory (1837-38), then of Iowa Territory itself (1838-1840) -- before the capital moved to Iowa City. Burlington's signature, real tourist attraction is Snake Alley, built in 1894 to connect a steep hillside's residential and manufacturing districts: five half-curves and two quarter-curves drop 58 feet over just 275 feet, a real, dated feat Ripley's Believe It, Or Not! dubbed "The Crookedest Street in the World" in the 1940s. This record discloses the honest comparison to San Francisco's more famous Lombard Street directly: Lombard remains more widely known, but Snake Alley's own turns total approximately 1,100 degrees versus Lombard's roughly 1,000 -- a real, cited, competing claim rather than an overstatement of Snake Alley's fame. Burlington's real, current economy rests on a genuinely diversified manufacturing base (Winegard, Federal-Mogul, GE Distribution and Control, Dresser-Rand) and a real 19th-century railroad heritage as namesake of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad. Housing runs genuinely, substantially affordable (cited figures span roughly $100,000-$123,500), though Burlington's own effective property tax rate (approximately 1.52%, the highest in Des Moines County) and its real, disclosed elevated crime rate (higher than 96% of Iowa's own cities and towns per one source) are honest tradeoffs this record does not soften. Southeast Iowa Regional Medical Center (formerly Great River Medical Center) anchors real, substantial local healthcare access.
Explore Burlington in depth
- Moving to Burlington: Pros, Cons & What to Know
- Cost of Living in Burlington
- Housing Market in Burlington
- Buying a Home in Burlington
- Renting in Burlington
- Taxes in Burlington
- Homeowners Insurance & Natural Hazard Costs in Burlington
- Climate & Weather in Burlington
- Jobs & Economy in Burlington
- Schools in Burlington
- Crime & Safety in Burlington
- Healthcare in Burlington
- Traffic & Transportation in Burlington
- Best Areas to Live in Burlington
- Pros and Cons of Living in Burlington
- Retiring in Burlington
- Who Should / Shouldn’t Move to Burlington
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Learn moreHousing
Taxes
Not independently sourced at the Des Moines County level this session. Iowa's top state income tax rate is 3.80%. See the Iowa hub page for the statewide property tax context -- do not treat that figure as Burlington-specific.
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Get local guidanceThe tradeoffs
Pros
Genuinely affordable housing among the most affordable of Iowa's Tier A markets; Iowa's real, low flat 3.8% state income tax; a real, distinct tourist identity via Snake Alley's genuine, dated "Crookedest Street in the World" claim; a real, dated 19th-century territorial-capital history; a diversified real manufacturing base (Winegard, Federal-Mogul, GE, Dresser-Rand); and real, substantial hospital access via Southeast Iowa Regional Medical Center.
Cons
A real, disclosed, measurable population decline since the 2020 Census (approximately -3.16%); an elevated crime rate genuinely above both the national rate and 96% of Iowa's own cities per one source; the highest effective property tax rate within Des Moines County (approximately 1.52%); real, direct Mississippi River flood exposure for riverfront and low-lying properties; and genuinely limited local commercial-airport access requiring a car-dependent lifestyle.
Who this fits
Best for: Best fits movers connected to Burlington's real, current manufacturing base (Winegard, Federal-Mogul, GE, Dresser-Rand) or drawn to genuinely low-cost Mississippi River-town living with a real, distinct tourism/history identity -- researching current, address-specific crime, flood-zone, and property-tax data directly for any target property.
Maybe not for you if: Probably not the right fit for anyone requiring a citywide crime rate at or below the national average, given Burlington's real, disclosed elevated crime data; anyone seeking a growing rather than genuinely declining population; or anyone unwilling to weigh real, direct Mississippi River flood exposure for a riverfront or low-lying target property.
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