Waveland Woods, Des Moines
Waveland Woods is one of the 46 neighborhoods the City of Des Moines recognizes (city neighborhood list). The city's list gives its recognition date as November 8, 1993, a date 15 other neighborhoods share.
Boundaries
| North | University Avenue |
|---|---|
| South | Interstate-235 |
| East | 56th Street |
| West | 63rd Street (City Limits) |
Residential parcels and assessed values
The Polk County Auditor's parcel data puts 389 residential parcels inside Waveland Woods' boundary: the 9th lowest count of the 46 neighborhoods. 373 of them have a dwelling value. Their median assessed value is $246,600, and the middle half are assessed between $203,200 and $321,000.
That median is the 14th highest of the 46 neighborhoods' medians. The middle of those 46 medians is $201,725, and Waveland Woods' is $44,875 above it.
Assessed for property tax as of January 1, 2025; not sale prices. What is counted.
School and taxing district
Every residential parcel in Waveland Woods is in the Des Moines Independent Community School District and in one taxing district, Des Moines city, Des Moines Independent schools, at a consolidated rate of $43.74496 per $1,000 of taxable value for the bills paid in September 2026 and March 2027 (Polk County Auditor's rate table). 34 other neighborhoods are wholly in the same two.
Finding the school for an address.
On a home assessed at Waveland Woods' median, $246,600, the yearly tax works out to about $4,592.00: $246,600 × 44.5345% rollback = $109,822 taxable, ÷ 1,000 × $43.74496 = $4,804.16, less the $212.16 homestead credit (who gets it).
Estimate the tax on another value → · Every Des Moines taxing district →
Census figures
One Census block group lies mostly inside Waveland Woods (how they are matched). It covers 97.7% of its area and holds 100.0% of its 394 housing units in the 2020 Census. The table gives the Census Bureau's American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year estimates for it, with margins of error at 90% confidence: a median value of $224,500 and a median year built of 1948.
| Block group | Median value owners' own estimate | Median year built |
|---|---|---|
| Block group 2, tract 30.01100.0% of Waveland Woods' 2020 housing units | $224,500 ± $13,495 | 1948 ± 3 years |
Owner-occupied homes, pooled over the block group: 87.3% of 379 occupied homes (± 6.6 points; pooled with the Census Bureau's formulas).
Parks
The city's parks layer has one park mostly inside Waveland Woods' boundary, and one more partly inside or along it (which parks are listed).
Mostly inside: Golf Creek Open Space.
Partly inside or along the boundary: Cummins Creek Open Space (open space).
All 46 recognized neighborhoods → · ← Waveland Park · Westwood →
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.
- 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.
- U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020-2024: tables B25077 (median value), B25035 (median year structure built) and B25003 (tenure), by block group, via the Census Data API. Retrieved November 5, 2026. This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
- U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey and Puerto Rico Community Survey 2024 Subject Definitions (Value; Year Structure Built; Tenure). Retrieved November 5, 2026.
- U.S. Census Bureau, Understanding and Using American Community Survey Data (2020), chapter 8: Calculating Measures of Error for Derived Estimates. 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.