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Country around Wadena is a rural area of about 367 people in Fayette County, Iowa, named for the post office its ZIP code uses. It's about 43 miles from Waterloo, IA and 166 miles from Minneapolis, MN, the nearest major city. Summer highs average 82°F and winter highs 25°F, with about 40 inches of snow a year. The typical home is valued around $113k and rent runs about $737 a month.
367people
$113kTypical home
$737/moRent
82° / 25°Summer / winter
40"Snow
228Sunny days
111Rain/snow days
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Size & setting
- Rural — about 367 people spread over the area
- A standalone small town, not a suburb
- About 11 people per sq mi
- 166 mi to Minneapolis, MN
- 43 mi to Waterloo, IA
- 42 mi to the nearest town of 10k+
Money
- Typical home $113k (≈$712/mo)
- Median rent $737/mo
- Median household income $52k
- Property tax about 1.2% of value
- 3.0% unemployment
Weather
- Summer highs around 82°F
- Winter highs around 25°F
- Somewhat humid summers (dew point 62°F)
- 228 sunny days a year (80 totally clear)
- 137 cloudy days a year
- 44 of 90 winter days are gray
- 111 days a year with rain or snow
- 40" of snow a year
- 13 days a year with 1"+ of snow
- Rarely hits 100°F
- 48 nights a year below 10°F
- Breezy
Safety
- Very low violent crime (156 per 100k), county-wide
- Very low property crime (270 per 100k), county-wide
People
- Median age 54
- 18% of households have kids
- 27% are 65 or older
- 19% have a college degree
- Not very diverse
- 4% of residents are college students
Getting around & homes
- Average commute 26 min
- 3% walk or take transit to work
- 43 mi to ALO airport
- 137 mi to DSM (major hub)
- 109 mi to the nearest Amtrak station
- 82% single-family homes
- Typical home built around 1963
- 82% of homes have broadband
Outdoors
- Gently rolling terrain
- Elevation 1,102 ft
- 754 mi to the ocean
- 110 mi to a big lake
- 27 mi to the nearest trailhead
- 49 mi to the nearest ski area
- 2 mi to the nearest campground
- 12 golf courses within 25 mi
Things to do
- 28 sit-down restaurants within 25 mi
- Few or no bars within 25 mi
- Few or no coffee shops within 25 mi
- No music venues & clubs within 25 mi
- 12 museums within 25 mi
- No breweries & distilleries within 25 mi
- 10 mi to the nearest farmers market
Everyday
- Schools in the bottom 37% of Iowa districts (reading)
- 11 mi to the nearest grocery store
- 12 mi to the nearest ER hospital
- 43 mi to a 4–5★ hospital
- 30 mi to the nearest vet
- 29 mi to the nearest dog park
- 13 congregations per 10k people
- 7 mi to the nearest college
Politics
- Fayette County: R+31 in 2024
- Iowa: R+13 in 2024
Natural hazards
- Very low hurricane risk
- High tornado risk
- Very low wildfire risk
- Very low earthquake risk
- Low flood risk
- Low drought risk
- High winter storm risk
- Low heat wave risk
- Very low volcano risk
Some of this place's Census numbers are blended with county figures because its survey sample is small.