Lower Beaver, Des Moines
Lower Beaver is one of the 46 neighborhoods the City of Des Moines recognizes (city neighborhood list). The city's list gives its recognition date as July 24, 2000; 30 of the 46 were recognized in an earlier year.
Boundaries
| North | Interstate 80 |
|---|---|
| South | Douglas Avenue |
| East | Des Moines River |
| West | Beaver Avenue |
The website the city lists for the Lower Beaver association: lowerbeaver.org (checked November 5, 2026).
Residential parcels and assessed values
The Polk County Auditor's parcel data puts 2,351 residential parcels inside Lower Beaver's boundary: the 11th highest count of the 46 neighborhoods. 2,309 of them have a dwelling value. Their median assessed value is $242,300, and the middle half are assessed between $214,300 and $278,700.
That median is the 15th highest of the 46 neighborhoods' medians. The middle of those 46 medians is $201,725, and Lower Beaver's is $40,575 above it.
Assessed for property tax as of January 1, 2025; not sale prices. What is counted.
School districts
Lower Beaver's residential parcels are in two school districts:
- Des Moines Independent Community School District: 2,160 parcels (91.9%)
- Johnston Community School District: 191 parcels (8.1%)
Address look-up: Johnston district boundaries. Finding the school for an address.
Property taxes
Lower Beaver's residential parcels are in two taxing districts, at these consolidated rates per $1,000 of taxable value for the bills paid in September 2026 and March 2027 (Polk County Auditor's rate table):
| Taxing district | Rate per $1,000 | Residential parcels |
|---|---|---|
| Des Moines city, Des Moines Independent schools | 43.74496 | 2,160 91.9% |
| Des Moines city, Johnston schools | 42.61235 | 191 8.1% |
On a home assessed at Lower Beaver's median, $242,300, in the largest district, the yearly tax works out to about $4,508.22: $242,300 × 44.5345% rollback = $107,907 taxable, ÷ 1,000 × $43.74496 = $4,720.39, less the $212.16 homestead credit (who gets it).
Estimate the tax on another value → · Every Des Moines taxing district →
Census figures
No Census figures are quoted for Lower Beaver: the five block groups mostly inside it cover 44.4% of its area and hold 66.4% of its 2,738 housing units in the 2020 Census, short of the 80% this site needs for both. How block groups are matched.
Parks
The city's parks layer has two parks mostly inside Lower Beaver's boundary, and three more partly inside or along it (which parks are listed).
Mostly inside: Tom and Sophie Vlassis Greenway (linear park), Woodlawn Park.
Partly inside or along the boundary: Sycamore Area, Trestle to Trestle Trail Greenway (linear park), Des Moines River Open Space (open space).
All 46 recognized neighborhoods → · ← King Irving · Martin Luther King Jr. Park →
Renting in Des Moines → Zillow's typical rent and the Census Bureau's renter figures for the city.
Sources
- City of Des Moines, Neighborhoods (recognized neighborhood boundaries, boundary streets, recognition dates and websites), Des Moines Area Regional GIS Partnership. Retrieved November 5, 2026. © City of Des Moines, Iowa. All rights reserved. Facts stated with credit; the boundary maps are not reproduced.
- Polk County Auditor, Polk County Cadastral Parcels REST service: parcel boundaries, condominium unit points and the Value table (tax year 2025). Retrieved November 5, 2026. Polk County compiled this information for government purposes only and makes no warranty; it is not responsible for non-governmental use.
- Polk County Auditor, Consolidated Tax Levy Rates For Polk County, Iowa: For 2025 Assessed Valuations, Taxes Payable September 2026 and March 2027 (City Non-Agricultural section). Retrieved November 5, 2026.
- Johnston Community School District, Maps & Boundaries (where do I go to school?). Retrieved November 5, 2026.
- Iowa Legislature, Iowa Code 2026, section 425.2 (qualifying for the homestead credit: claim filed by July 1 of the year claimed; a buyer refiles). Retrieved November 5, 2026.
- Iowa Department of Revenue, Homestead Tax Credit and Exemption. Retrieved November 5, 2026.
- U.S. Census Bureau, TIGERweb, 2020 Census blocks with housing-unit counts (HU100). Retrieved November 5, 2026.
- U.S. Census Bureau, TIGERweb, ACS 2024 block group boundaries. Retrieved November 5, 2026.
- City of Des Moines, Parks, Des Moines Area Regional GIS Partnership. Retrieved November 5, 2026. © City of Des Moines, Iowa. All rights reserved.
The city's boundaries are used only to count what falls inside them; this site does not reproduce the city's maps. This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
Public records, shown as published for the dates named. Not an appraisal, not real-estate or tax advice. Check a specific address's school and tax district with the district and the county.