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Rolfe is a tiny town of 626 people in Pocahontas County, Iowa. It's about 72 miles from Ames, IA and 161 miles from Minneapolis, MN, the nearest major city. Summer highs average 84°F and winter highs 25°F, with about 39 inches of snow a year. The typical home is valued around $49k and rent runs about $708 a month.
626people
$49kTypical home
$708/moRent
84° / 25°Summer / winter
39"Snow
237Sunny days
103Rain/snow days
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Size & setting
- Tiny town of 626
- A standalone small town, not a suburb
- About 594 people per sq mi
- 161 mi to Minneapolis, MN
- 72 mi to Ames, IA
- 28 mi to the nearest town of 10k+
Money
- Typical home $49k (≈$306/mo)
- Median rent $708/mo
- Median household income $51k
- Property tax about 1.5% of value
- 14.0% unemployment
Weather
- Summer highs around 84°F
- Winter highs around 25°F
- Somewhat humid summers (dew point 61°F)
- 237 sunny days a year (84 totally clear)
- 128 cloudy days a year
- 40 of 90 winter days are gray
- 103 days a year with rain or snow
- 39" of snow a year
- 14 days a year with 1"+ of snow
- Rarely hits 100°F
- 48 nights a year below 10°F
- Windier than most places
Safety
- Very low violent crime (57 per 100k), county-wide
- Very low property crime (255 per 100k), county-wide
People
- Median age 39
- 25% of households have kids
- 22% are 65 or older
- 13% have a college degree
- Not very diverse
- 2% of residents are college students
Getting around & homes
- Average commute 22 min
- 4% walk or take transit to work
- 25 mi to FOD airport
- 99 mi to DSM (major hub)
- 122 mi to the nearest Amtrak station
- 89% single-family homes
- Typical home built around 1948
- 85% of homes have broadband
Outdoors
- Flat, open land
- Elevation 1,175 ft
- 852 mi to the ocean
- 204 mi to a big lake
- 77 mi to the nearest trailhead
- 62 mi to the nearest ski area
- 18 mi to the nearest campground
- 13 golf courses within 25 mi
Things to do
- 22 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
- 13 museums within 25 mi
- No breweries & distilleries within 25 mi
- 71 mi to the nearest farmers market
Everyday
- Schools in the bottom 25% of Iowa districts (reading)
- 17 mi to the nearest grocery store
- 11 mi to the nearest ER hospital
- 39 mi to a 4–5★ hospital
- 47 mi to the nearest vet
- 52 mi to the nearest dog park
- 20 congregations per 10k people
- 36 mi to the nearest college
Politics
- Pocahontas County: R+54 in 2024
- Iowa: R+13 in 2024
Natural hazards
- Very low hurricane risk
- High tornado risk
- Very low wildfire risk
- Very low earthquake risk
- Moderate 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.