The 68901 zip code in Hastings tops our ranking of the most affordable places to live in Nebraska.
We looked at 60 zip codes in the state, evaluating home values, rental costs, energy rates, property taxes, and five other affordability indicators. We used the data we gathered to calculate our proprietary Affordability Score for each zip code.
Top 10 most affordable places to live in Nebraska
| Rank | City | Affordability Score | Median home value | Rental costs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hastings 🥇 | 100.0 | $199,897 | $1,360 |
| 2 | Omaha 🥈 | 98.7 | $184,014 | $999 |
| 3 | Bellevue 🥉 | 96.2 | $249,303 | $1,360 |
| 4 | Lexington | 95.7 | $204,959 | $1,272 |
| 5 | Bennington | 95.1 | $410,048 | $1,415 |
| 6 | Scottsbluff | 92.2 | $180,295 | $1,360 |
| 7 | Gretna | 92.1 | $434,367 | $1,542 |
| 8 | Plattsmouth | 91.5 | $305,609 | $1,193 |
| 9 | Lincoln | 91.3 | $236,929 | $889 |
| 10 | Papillion | 90.2 | $420,214 | $1,360 |
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1. Hastings
Here's why the 68901 zip code in Hastings is Nebraska's most affordable place to live.
🔎 Key data about Hastings
| Data point | Value | Rank (out of 60 markets) | Difference from median or average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Affordability Score | 100.0 | No. 1 | N/A |
| Median home value | $199,897[1] | No. 8 | -$91,272.06 |
| Home affordability ratio | 3.0 | No. 9 | -0.5 |
| Home value five-year change | 29.5%[2] | No. 23 | -0.7% |
| Home value one-year forecast | 0.0%[3] | No. 1 | -0.5% |
| Rental costs | $1,360[4] | No. 26 | $0 |
| Rent affordability ratio | 1.64% | No. 23 | 0.0% |
| Median household income | $66,585[5] | No. 42 | -$16,094 |
| Property taxes | $2,854[6] | No. 14 | -$1,373 |
| Energy costs | $0.10 kWh[7] | No. 3 | -$0.01 |
Hastings's 68901 zip code is the cheapest place to live in Nebraska, leading the 60 markets we evaluated.
The median home value is $199,897, making it the 8th-cheapest housing market in the state. Forecasts project a 0.0% change in home values in the next year. Rent in the zip code averages $1,360 per month, which is the 23rd cheapest amount in Nebraska.
The median property tax for homeowners in Hastings is $2,854 per household, the No. 14 ranked market in Nebraska.
Residents pay $0.10 per kWh of electricity, which ranks No. 3 among Nebraska markets.
2. Omaha
The 68107 zip code is the 2nd-cheapest place to live in Nebraska.
🔎 Key data about Omaha
| Data point | Value | Rank (out of 60 markets) | Difference from median or average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Affordability Score | 98.7 | No. 2 | N/A |
| Median home value | $184,014[8] | No. 6 | -$107,155.13 |
| Home affordability ratio | 2.9 | No. 6 | -0.6 |
| Home value five-year change | 34.4%[9] | No. 41 | 4.2% |
| Home value one-year forecast | 0.3%[10] | No. 13 | -0.2% |
| Rental costs | $999[11] | No. 4 | -$361 |
| Rent affordability ratio | 1.60% | No. 20 | 0.0% |
| Median household income | $62,560[12] | No. 48 | -$20,119 |
| Property taxes | $2,592[13] | No. 8 | -$1,635 |
| Energy costs | $0.11 kWh[14] | No. 37 | $0.01 |
Omaha's 68107 zip code has a median home value of $184,014, which is the 13th-cheapest housing market in Nebraska. You can rent for an average of $999 per month. That's the 4th-cheapest price in the state.
The average household income in the zip code is $62,560, which ranks 48th-highest in the state.
Homeowners in Omaha pay a median property tax of $2,592 per year, making it the 8th-most affordable market in Nebraska.
Omaha ranks No. 37 among Nebraska energy markets. You'll pay $0.11 per kWh of electricity.
3. Bellevue
The 3rd-cheapest place to live in Nebraska is Bellevue's 68147 zip code.
🔎 Key data about Bellevue
| Data point | Value | Rank (out of 60 markets) | Difference from median or average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Affordability Score | 96.2 | No. 3 | N/A |
| Median home value | $249,303[15] | No. 21 | -$41,866.07 |
| Home affordability ratio | 2.8 | No. 2 | -0.8 |
| Home value five-year change | 35.2%[16] | No. 45 | 5.0% |
| Home value one-year forecast | 0.3%[17] | No. 13 | -0.2% |
| Rental costs | $1,360[18] | No. 26 | $0 |
| Rent affordability ratio | 1.64% | No. 23 | 0.0% |
| Median household income | $90,255[19] | No. 15 | $7,576 |
| Property taxes | $3,422[20] | No. 22 | -$805 |
| Energy costs | $0.11 kWh[21] | No. 37 | $0.01 |
The No. 21 cheapest housing market in Nebraska is Bellevue's 68147 zip code, with a median home value of $249,303. Rents in the market average $1,360 per month, making it the 26th-most affordable rental market in the state.
The median property tax for households in Bellevue is $3,422, which makes it the 22nd-cheapest place in Nebraska. Bellevue ranks No. 37 among Nebraska markets by energy costs. Residents pay $0.11 per kWh of electricity.
4. Lexington
The 68850 zip code in Lexington comes in at No. 4 on our list of the cheapest places to live in Nebraska.
🔎 Key data about Lexington
| Data point | Value | Rank (out of 60 markets) | Difference from median or average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Affordability Score | 95.7 | No. 4 | N/A |
| Median home value | $204,959[22] | No. 11 | -$86,209.74 |
| Home affordability ratio | 3.0 | No. 7 | -0.6 |
| Home value five-year change | 33.6%[23] | No. 36 | 3.4% |
| Home value one-year forecast | 0.4%[24] | No. 35 | -0.1% |
| Rental costs | $1,272[25] | No. 21 | -$87 |
| Rent affordability ratio | 1.84% | No. 40 | 0.2% |
| Median household income | $69,238[26] | No. 35 | -$13,441 |
| Property taxes | $2,030[27] | No. 2 | -$2,197 |
| Energy costs | $0.11 kWh[28] | No. 32 | $0.00 |
The No. 11 cheapest housing market in Nebraska is Lexington's 68850 zip code, where the median home value is $204,959. Renters here pay an average of $1,272 per month.
When it comes to energy costs, Lexington ranks 32nd among Nebraska markets. Residents pay $0.11 per kWh of electricity.
The median property tax for households in the zip code is $2,030, which makes it the 2nd-cheapest market in Nebraska.
5. Bennington
The 68007 zip code in Bennington ranks No. 5 among Nebraska's most affordable places to live.
🔎 Key data about Bennington
| Data point | Value | Rank (out of 60 markets) | Difference from median or average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Affordability Score | 95.1 | No. 5 | N/A |
| Median home value | $410,048[29] | No. 56 | $118,879.37 |
| Home affordability ratio | 2.9 | No. 5 | -0.6 |
| Home value five-year change | 23.7%[30] | No. 2 | -6.5% |
| Home value one-year forecast | 0.2%[31] | No. 2 | -0.3% |
| Rental costs | $1,415[32] | No. 39 | $55 |
| Rent affordability ratio | 1.00% | No. 1 | -0.6% |
| Median household income | $141,042[33] | No. 4 | $58,363 |
| Property taxes | $8,095[34] | No. 59 | $3,868 |
| Energy costs | $0.11 kWh[35] | No. 20 | $0.00 |
Bennington's 68007 zip code has a median home value of $410,048, the 56th-cheapest market in the state. Forecasts project a 0.2% change in home values in the next year.
The median property tax per household in Bennington is $8,095. It's the 59th-cheapest market by tax rate in Nebraska.
6. Scottsbluff
The No. 6 most affordable place to live in Nebraska is the 69361 zip code.
🔎 Key data about Scottsbluff
| Data point | Value | Rank (out of 60 markets) | Difference from median or average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Affordability Score | 92.2 | No. 6 | N/A |
| Median home value | $180,295[36] | No. 3 | -$110,873.94 |
| Home affordability ratio | 3.1 | No. 12 | -0.4 |
| Home value five-year change | 35.9%[37] | No. 48 | 5.7% |
| Home value one-year forecast | 1.0%[38] | No. 52 | 0.5% |
| Rental costs | $1,360[39] | No. 26 | $0 |
| Rent affordability ratio | 1.64% | No. 23 | 0.0% |
| Median household income | $58,623[40] | No. 52 | -$24,056 |
| Property taxes | $2,325[41] | No. 4 | -$1,902 |
| Energy costs | $0.11 kWh[42] | No. 33 | $0.00 |
The back half of our top 10 kicks off with Scottsbluff's 69361 zip code, which has the 3rd-cheapest home values in Nebraska. The median home value is $180,295. Rents average $1,360 per month, making it the 26th-most affordable rental market in the state.
Residents pay $0.11 per kWh of electricity. It's the 33rd-cheapest energy market.
7. Gretna
Gretna's 68028 zip code is the 7th-cheapest place to live in Nebraska.
🔎 Key data about Gretna
| Data point | Value | Rank (out of 60 markets) | Difference from median or average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Affordability Score | 92.1 | No. 7 | N/A |
| Median home value | $434,367[43] | No. 58 | $143,197.78 |
| Home affordability ratio | 3.0 | No. 10 | -0.5 |
| Home value five-year change | 24.2%[44] | No. 4 | -6.0% |
| Home value one-year forecast | 0.2%[45] | No. 2 | -0.3% |
| Rental costs | $1,542[46] | No. 51 | $182 |
| Rent affordability ratio | 1.07% | No. 2 | -0.6% |
| Median household income | $143,604[47] | No. 3 | $60,925 |
| Property taxes | $7,611[48] | No. 58 | $3,384 |
| Energy costs | $0.11 kWh[49] | No. 20 | $0.00 |
You'll find the 58th-cheapest home values in Nebraska in Gretna's 68028 zip code. The median value: $434,367. Renters in Gretna pay an average of $1,542 per month.
Homeowners in Gretna pay a median property tax of $7,611 per year, which is Nebraska's 58th-most affordable market.
The average household income is $143,604, which ranks 3rd-highest in the state.
8. Plattsmouth
The 8th-cheapest place to live in Nebraska is Plattsmouth's 68048 zip code.
🔎 Key data about Plattsmouth
| Data point | Value | Rank (out of 60 markets) | Difference from median or average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Affordability Score | 91.5 | No. 8 | N/A |
| Median home value | $305,609[50] | No. 40 | $14,439.73 |
| Home affordability ratio | 3.4 | No. 24 | -0.1 |
| Home value five-year change | 33.7%[51] | No. 37 | 3.5% |
| Home value one-year forecast | 0.2%[52] | No. 2 | -0.3% |
| Rental costs | $1,193[53] | No. 11 | -$166 |
| Rent affordability ratio | 1.33% | No. 9 | -0.3% |
| Median household income | $89,931[54] | No. 16 | $7,252 |
| Property taxes | $3,760[55] | No. 31 | -$467 |
| Energy costs | $0.11 kWh[56] | No. 20 | $0.00 |
The 40th-cheapest housing market in Nebraska is Plattsmouth's 68048 zip code, with a median home value of $305,609. Renters pay an average of $1,193 per month, the No. 11 rental market in the state.
The median property tax for households in Plattsmouth is $3,760, which makes it the 31st-cheapest place in Nebraska. The average household income of $89,931 ranks 16th.
9. Lincoln
Lincoln's 68502 zip code sneaks into the top ten of Nebraska's most affordable places to live.
🔎 Key data about Lincoln
| Data point | Value | Rank (out of 60 markets) | Difference from median or average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Affordability Score | 91.3 | No. 9 | N/A |
| Median home value | $236,929[57] | No. 19 | -$54,239.74 |
| Home affordability ratio | 3.5 | No. 27 | -0.1 |
| Home value five-year change | 34.4%[58] | No. 40 | 4.2% |
| Home value one-year forecast | 0.5%[59] | No. 40 | 0.0% |
| Rental costs | $889[60] | No. 2 | -$471 |
| Rent affordability ratio | 1.30% | No. 8 | -0.3% |
| Median household income | $68,523[61] | No. 37 | -$14,156 |
| Property taxes | $3,507[62] | No. 25 | -$720 |
| Energy costs | $0.10 kWh[63] | No. 6 | -$0.01 |
The 19th-cheapest housing market in Nebraska is Lincoln's 68502 zip code, where the median home value is $236,929. Renters pay an average of $889 per month. It's the state's 2nd-cheapest rental market.
The median property tax for households within the zip code is $3,507, which makes it the 25th-cheapest property tax rate in Nebraska.
10. Papillion
The final spot on our list of the most affordable places to live in Nebraska goes to the 68133 zip code in Papillion.
🔎 Key data about Papillion
| Data point | Value | Rank (out of 60 markets) | Difference from median or average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Affordability Score | 90.2 | No. 10 | N/A |
| Median home value | $420,214[64] | No. 57 | $129,045.13 |
| Home affordability ratio | 3.1 | No. 14 | -0.4 |
| Home value five-year change | 25.2%[65] | No. 8 | -5.0% |
| Home value one-year forecast | 0.2%[66] | No. 2 | -0.3% |
| Rental costs | $1,360[67] | No. 26 | $0 |
| Rent affordability ratio | 1.64% | No. 23 | 0.0% |
| Median household income | $134,426[68] | No. 5 | $51,747 |
| Property taxes | $6,906[69] | No. 55 | $2,679 |
| Energy costs | $0.11 kWh[70] | No. 20 | $0.00 |
The 57th-most affordable market in Nebraska is Papillion's 68133 zip code. The median home value is $420,214. Rent in the market costs $1,360 per month on average, making it the 26th-most affordable rental market in Nebraska.
The median property tax for households in Papillion is $6,906, which is the 55th-cheapest property tax rate in the state.
Papillion ranks No. 20 among Nebraska markets by energy costs, with households paying $0.11 per kWh of electricity.
How we ranked the most affordable places in Nebraska
We evaluated 60 zip codes in Nebraska with a population over 10,000 on nine metrics. We then assigned each market an Affordability Score based on its weighted and combined rankings.
Our proprietary Affordability Score is a score on a scale of 0 (worst in state) to 100 (best in state) that estimates the affordability of a particular zip code. It takes into account these key data points for each zip code.
- Median home value: The median home value for each zip code comes from the Zillow Home Value Index. The lower the median home value relative to the median value in Nebraska, the higher our score on this component. We assign a weight of 13.0% to median home value.
- Home affordability ratio. The home affordability ratio is the typical median home value divided by the median household income in the zip code, which reveals the number of years of household income needed to afford a home in that zip code. A lower ratio is better because it means more households can afford a home. The data comes from the Zillow Observed Rent Index and the U.S. Census American Community Survey. We assign a weight of 28.0% to the home affordability ratio.
- Home value five-year change: The home value five-year change is the amount that the median home value in the zip code has risen or fallen during the last five years. Our data comes from the Zillow Home Value Index. We assign a weight of 10.0% to the home value five-year change.
- Home value one-year forecast: The home value one-year forecast comes from Zillow Forecast data. It projects how much home values in the zip code are forecasted to change in the next year. We assign a weight of 8.0% to the home value one-year forecast.
- Rental costs. The rental costs are the observed rents in the zip code, sourced from the Zillow Observed Rent Index. The index includes "listed rents that fall into the 40th to 60th percentile range for all homes and apartments in a given region." We assign a weight of 7.0% to rental costs.
- Median household income: The inflation-adjusted median household income figures for the zip code comes from the U.S. Census American Community Survey. We assign a weight of 5.0% to median household income.
- Rent affordability ratio. The rent affordability ratio is the ratio of rental costs divided by median household income, which provides the percentage of household income needed to pay a typical month’s rent in the zip code. The data comes from the Zillow Observed Rent Index and the U.S. Census American Community Survey. We assign a weight of 17.0% to the rent affordability ratio.
- Property taxes: The property tax figures are the median real estate taxes paid in the zip code, sourced from the U.S. Census American Community Survey. The lower the property tax rate relative to the Nebraska average, the higher our score on this component. We assign a weight of 8.0% to property taxes.
- Energy costs: The energy costs are the costs of a kilowatt hour (kWh) of residential electricity in the zip code, sourced from the U.S. Department of Energy. The lower the cost of electricity relative to the Nebraska average, the higher our score on this component. We assign a weight of 4.0% to energy costs.
✍️ Editor’s note: Our Affordability Score identifies the most affordable places in a state by zip code. Often the zip code we identify will represent an entire city or portion of a city.
Occasionally the zip code we identify will encompass an area that includes one or more small towns. In these cases, the data we’ve gathered applies to the entire zip code, not just the single town we’re using to help identify the zip code's location.
If you’re looking to move to one of these affordable places, we recommend doing additional research to make sure the costs in the area — and the quality of life it offers — meet your specific needs.
