Postal Codes

51238 ZIP Code

Advertisement

English Español

ZIP code 51238 covers Hospers, Iowa, with a population of about 1,483 and a median household income of $82,634.

Population
1,48330 per square mile
Median age
34.14.6 points below the US average
Median household income
$82,6341.1× the Iowa median
Poverty rate
9%3.4 points below the US average
Typical home value
$273,855
Median rent
$69826% below the Iowa median
Degree or higher
21.2%13.8 points below the US average
Homeownership
87.2%22.2 points above the US average
Time zone
Central UTC-06:00observes daylight saving time
Businesses
38

Where 51238 is

Hospers, Iowa — the area the Census Bureau draws for this ZIP code. ZIP codes are sets of delivery routes rather than areas, so this is the Census approximation of one, not a Postal Service boundary.

People and households

American Community Survey 2019–2023 five-year estimates

Population1,483
Median age34.1
Family households67.5%
Born outside the US5%
Speaks a language other than English at home13.2%
White (non-Hispanic)80.4%
Black (non-Hispanic)1.9%
Asian (non-Hispanic)0%
Hispanic or Latino15.1%
Veterans6.2%
Population by age
MaleFemale0-45-910-1415-1920-2425-3435-4445-5455-6465-7475-8485+
Income and poverty

American Community Survey 2019–2023 five-year estimates

Median household income$82,634
Income per person$33,061
Poverty rate9%
Households on SNAP or cash assistance5%

Household income distribution

Under $10k0.4%
$10–15k2.4%
$15–20k1.3%
$20–25k0.9%
$25–30k4.3%
$30–35k8.9%
$35–40k5.8%
$40–45k3.0%
$45–50k1.7%
$50–60k7.1%
$60–75k8.9%
$75–100k21.3%
$100–125k9.3%
$125–150k10.2%
$150–200k10.2%
$200k or more4.5%

Income as declared to the IRS

Filed returns rather than survey responses, so this counts tax units and not households.

Tax returns filed560
Mean adjusted gross income$104,421
Returns declaring $200,000 or more7.1%
Returns, under $25k17.9%
Returns, $25k–$50k19.6%
Returns, $50k–$75k19.6%
Returns, $75k–$100k14.3%
Returns, $100k–$200k21.4%
Returns, $200k or more7.1%
Housing

American Community Survey 2019–2023 five-year estimates

Median home value$176,000
Median gross rent$698
Rent as a share of household income18.5%
Owner-occupied87.2%
Vacant homes1.6%
Median year built1957

What the homes are

Detached house92.7%
Attached house0.9%
2 to 4 units2.6%
5 to 19 units3.3%
Mobile home0.5%
Home values and rents today

Zillow Home Value Index and Zillow Observed Rent Index, courtesy of Zillow. Monthly and current, where the Census figures above are a five-year average and are capped at $2,000,000.

Typical home value$273,855as of 2026-07
Typical home value, 1 yearup 4.4%
Typical home value since 2000
202220242026$273,855$231,504

$231,504 in 2022 to $273,855 in 2026.

Work, commuting and education

American Community Survey 2019–2023 five-year estimates

Unemployment rate2.1%
Bachelor's degree or higher21.2%
High school diploma or higher93.3%
Works from home7%
Drives to work alone79.7%
Takes public transport0%
Commutes 45 minutes or more4.4%
Health

CDC PLACES 2025 release, model-based estimates. These are modelled small-area estimates for adults, not counts of diagnosed cases.

Obesity35.4% 2 pts above the national average of 33.4%
Diagnosed diabetes10.8% 1.2 pts below the national average of 12%
Currently smokes15.1% 1.9 pts above the national average of 13.2%
High blood pressure35.6% 1.5 pts above the national average of 34.1%
Fair or poor general health16.7% 3.6 pts below the national average of 20.3%
No health insurance (18–64)6.9% 4.4 pts below the national average of 11.3%
Depression20.5% 1.4 pts below the national average of 21.9%
No leisure-time physical activity24.5% 0.9 pts below the national average of 25.4%
Arthritis26.1% 1 pts above the national average of 25.1%
Binge drinking20.6% 4.6 pts above the national average of 16%
Taking blood pressure medication77.3% 2.6 pts above the national average of 74.7%
Cancer (non-skin)9.3% 1.6 pts above the national average of 7.7%
Current asthma9.7% 0.7 pts below the national average of 10.4%
Coronary heart disease6.7% 0.5 pts above the national average of 6.2%
Routine check-up in past year77.4% 0.7 pts above the national average of 76.7%
Cholesterol screening84.6% 1.3 pts below the national average of 85.9%
Cognitive disability13.3% 1.5 pts below the national average of 14.8%
Colorectal screening67.9% 3.6 pts above the national average of 64.3%
COPD7% same as the national average of 6.6%
Visited a dentist69.4% 8.1 pts above the national average of 61.3%
Any disability27.4% 3.3 pts below the national average of 30.7%
Lacks emotional support23.6% 1.2 pts below the national average of 24.8%
Food insecurity10.5% 6.6 pts below the national average of 17.1%
Received food stamps8.5% 5.8 pts below the national average of 14.3%
Hearing disability7.8% 1.1 pts above the national average of 6.7%
High cholesterol36.7% 0.5 pts above the national average of 36.2%
Housing insecurity8.5% 5.3 pts below the national average of 13.8%
Independent living disability7.2% 1.2 pts below the national average of 8.4%
Lacks transport6.2% 3 pts below the national average of 9.2%
Loneliness32.4% 2 pts below the national average of 34.4%
Mammography use79.5% 3.6 pts above the national average of 75.9%
Poor mental health (14+ days)16% 0.8 pts below the national average of 16.8%
Mobility disability12.5% 1.5 pts below the national average of 14%
Poor physical health (14+ days)12.8% 0.7 pts below the national average of 13.5%
Self-care disability3.3% 0.7 pts below the national average of 4%
Utility shut-off threat5.8% 3 pts below the national average of 8.8%
Sleeps under 7 hours28.1% 8.3 pts below the national average of 36.4%
Stroke3.3% same as the national average of 3.4%
All natural teeth lost11.7% 1.3 pts below the national average of 13%
Vision disability4% 1.6 pts below the national average of 5.6%
Advertisement
Business and employment

Census ZIP Code Business Patterns 2022

Business establishments38
People employed878
Annual payroll$46,104,000
Natural hazard risk

FEMA National Risk Index, estimated for this ZIP code from census tract data — the NRI is not published per ZIP.

Overall riskHigher than 84.9% of US census tracts
FEMA ratingRelatively Moderate to Relatively High across the 2 census tracts this ZIP code covers
Expected annual loss91.1 out of 100
Community resilience92.7 out of 100

By hazard

Score is out of 100 and is the area-weighted average across the census tracts this ZIP code covers. The rating beside it is the highest any one of those tracts carries.

Hail99.2Very High at its worst in this ZIP code
Winter weather98.6Very High at its worst in this ZIP code
Drought97.5Relatively Moderate at its worst in this ZIP code
Tornado96.9Very High at its worst in this ZIP code
Ice storm90.9Relatively High at its worst in this ZIP code
Strong wind90.3Relatively High at its worst in this ZIP code
Cold wave88.2Relatively High at its worst in this ZIP code
River flooding77.9Relatively High at its worst in this ZIP code
Wildfire75.2Relatively Low at its worst in this ZIP code
Lightning66.2Relatively Moderate at its worst in this ZIP code
Landslide65.3Very Low at its worst in this ZIP code
Heat wave43.7Relatively Low at its worst in this ZIP code
Earthquake20.8Very Low at its worst in this ZIP code
Compared with Iowa and the United States

State and national columns are figures for those areas, not for this ZIP code. American Community Survey 2019–2023 five-year estimates

This ZIPIowaUnited States
Median household income$82,634$73,147$78,538
Income per person$33,061$39,728$43,289
Poverty rate9%11%12.4%
Median home value$176,000$195,900$303,400
Median gross rent$698$949$1,348
Homeownership87.2%71.5%65%
Bachelor's degree or higher21.2%30.9%35%
Unemployment rate2.1%3.6%5.2%
Works from home7%10.4%13.5%
Born outside the US5%5.7%13.9%
Median age34.138.638.7
Climate

NOAA US Climate Normals 1991-2020, from the nearest weather station with a full year of records. The station and its distance are named above, because a station forty kilometres away describes somewhere else.

Weather stationSHELDON, IA US12.3 km away
Rain in a year31 in
Snow in a year41 in

Average high and low by month

January24.6°F / 5.2°F0.88 in rain, 8.7 in snow
February29.5°F / 9.1°F1 in rain, 7.2 in snow
March42.5°F / 21.3°F1.91 in rain, 6.6 in snow
April57°F / 32.4°F3.22 in rain, 3.3 in snow
May69°F / 46.2°F4.03 in rain, 0.2 in snow
June79.2°F / 57.2°F4.67 in rain
July82.7°F / 60.4°F3.61 in rain
August80.3°F / 57.5°F3.26 in rain
September74°F / 47.9°F3.39 in rain
October60.5°F / 34.6°F2.43 in rain, 0.5 in snow
November43.9°F / 21.6°F1.52 in rain, 4.7 in snow
December29.6°F / 11°F1.17 in rain, 9.6 in snow
Access to food

USDA Food Access Research Atlas, estimated for this ZIP code from census tract data. Each figure is the share of the ZIP code's land area that falls in a tract carrying that flag.

Low income and far from a supermarketNone of this ZIP code
Far from a supermarketNone of this ZIP code
No vehicle and far from a supermarketNone of this ZIP code
School districts

NCES Geographic Relationship File 2025, which states the association between each district and each ZIP code tabulation area directly. Elementary and secondary districts can cover the same ground, so shares need not total 100%.

This ZIP code is served by 2 school districts, so the address decides which one, not the ZIP code.

MOC-Floyd Valley Community School District71.9% of this ZIP code's land area
Sheldon Community School District28.1% of this ZIP code's land area
Community and walkability

CDC/ATSDR Social Vulnerability Index 2022 and the EPA National Walkability Index, both estimated for this ZIP code from census tract data. Vulnerability figures are national percentile ranks, not measurements.

Overall social vulnerability33more vulnerable than 33% of US census tracts
Socioeconomic status16more vulnerable than 16% of US census tracts
Household characteristics45more vulnerable than 45% of US census tracts
Racial and ethnic minority status13more vulnerable than 13% of US census tracts
Housing type and transport70more vulnerable than 70% of US census tracts
Walkability4.7 out of 20Least walkable
Nearby ZIP codes

The closest ZIP codes by centre point, which is not the same as sharing a border.

51022 Granville, IA12.3 km away
51201 Sheldon, IA12.8 km away
51041 Orange City, IA13.4 km away
51003 Alton, IA14 km away
51231 Archer, IA14.6 km away
51234 Boyden, IA14.9 km away
51244 Matlock, IA18.4 km away
51046 Paullina, IA20.7 km away
Location, counties and time zone

County shares from Census 2020 ZCTA relationship files. Time zone from the USDOT National Transportation Atlas, which renders the boundaries written into 49 CFR Part 71.

Sioux County67.7% of this ZIP code's land area
O'Brien County32.3% of this ZIP code's land area
Time zoneCentral (UTC-06:00 standard)
Daylight saving timeObserved
Land area49.16 sq mi
Population density30 people per sq mi
Latitude, longitude43.0793, -95.9142

Figures are published for this ZIP code or its Census tabulation area unless a section says otherwise. Estimates whose margin of error made them unreliable are omitted rather than shown. Sources: US Census Bureau, CDC, IRS.

Advertisement