Cost of Living in Newton
Newton's cost of living centers on genuinely affordable housing, offset by a real, disclosed above-average property tax rate and a genuinely elevated unemployment reading.
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Learn moreA genuinely affordable housing market
Zillow's typical home value ran $161,883 (up a modest 1.0% YoY), though Redfin's median sale price ran a notably higher $190,521 (June 2026, +9.0% YoY) -- a real, disclosed cross-source conflict (base record).
Iowa's real, flat 3.8% state income tax
Iowa's real, current flat 3.8% state income tax rate (2026) and full Social Security/55+ retirement-income exemptions apply in Newton as statewide -- a genuinely significant fact given Newton's own above-threshold senior population share (base record).
A real, disclosed above-average property tax burden
Ownwell cites Newton's median effective property tax rate at 1.74% (a separate source cites 1.77%), above Iowa's statewide median of approximately 1.55% (base record).
A real, disclosed elevated unemployment reading
Newton's unemployment rate runs in a real, disclosed range of approximately 4.2%-6% depending on source, genuinely elevated relative to Iowa's broader low-unemployment pattern -- movers should weigh this directly (base record).
Key takeaways
- Newton's typical home value ($161,883) runs genuinely affordable, though a real, disclosed spread reaches $190,521 by another measure.
- Iowa's flat 3.8% state income tax and full retirement-income exemptions apply statewide.
- Property tax runs above the Iowa statewide median (Ownwell's cited 1.74% rate).
- Unemployment runs genuinely elevated (roughly 4.2%-6%) relative to Iowa's broader pattern.
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