Tile Storefront, Market Street, 2003
New Sharon’s story
168 years in pictures
The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 2003.
- 1858New Sharon is settled
New SharonIA
A town of 1,247, settled in 1858.
Photo: Nicole Haas, Chicago Legend · CC BY-SA 4.0
Population
1,247
2025 Census estimate · −1% since 2020
Typical home
$229K
+12.4% in a year
Household income
$49K
median
Median age
40.9
years
Jobs based here
108
A commuter town
Is New Sharon a good place to live?
New Sharon’s best subject grades are an A+ for safety and civic life and an A for cost of living; its weakest is a D for incomes. On safety, just 1 of Iowa’s 127 towns do better. Most errands need a car: it is less walkable than 70% of U.S. towns. Only 11 of Iowa’s 276 towns score lower on incomes. Only 2 of Iowa’s 276 towns score lower on the outdoors. New Sharon has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
What makes New Sharon stand out
Where New Sharon beats most towns.
Violent crime per 1,000 residents
New Sharon0
Iowa2.4
U.S.3.3
SafetyA+
No violent crime reported in 2025
FBI data, 2025. Crimes reported to police.
Community nonprofits per 1,000 residents
New Sharon10.6
Typical U.S. town3.7
Typical IA town7.5
Civic lifeA+
41% more nonprofits per person
than the typical Iowa town
Charities, civic groups and human services; churches not counted.
Typical home value
New Sharon$229K
Iowa$237K
Cost of livingA
3.2 years of income buys a home
More affordable than 95% of U.S. towns
Zillow Home Value Index; area median household income, Census ACS.
Small town
1,247 people, and everyone knows the way
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Nearby towns
How New Sharon grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Iowa), ordered by how far New Sharon is from typical.
SafetyA+Open →Cost of livingAOpen →Jobs & income108 jobs based hereDOpen →WalkabilityEPA walkability 5.5 of 20; 1.6% of households have no car; 1.6% of workers walk, bike or ride transitCOpen →HealthMahaska Health Partnership 11.9 miles awayB+Open →Hazard riskFEMA risk higher than 32% of U.S. communities; inland flooding tops the listB+Open →SchoolsBeat 60% of Iowa districts on tests and graduationBOpen →
Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.
OutdoorsConserved land, trails and parksD−Open →History1 notable person born hereB−Open →Civic life10.6 community nonprofits per 1,000 residentsA+Open →
Described, not graded Taste, not quality: snow or an older crowd is neither good nor bad.
Climate–Open →Housing market$229K typical home, up 12.4% in a year–Open →Who lives hereMedian age 40.9; 21% of adults have a four-year degree–Open →
How TownRatings grades towns →
Getting set up
The full setup list →Moving to New Sharon: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in New Sharon, and how to reach them.
PowerMidAmerican Energy11.2¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
WaterMahaska Rural Water (New Sharon)No health-based violations in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet5 providers100% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & dumpNot on file yetWe don’t have New Sharon’s trash rules yet
Register to voteOnlineIn Iowa you can register online until 15 days before Election Day, in person up to and including Election Day, or by mail (postmarked 15 days before).vote.govWho runs elections hereMahaska County AuditorMahaska County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Jun 2023
ZIP code5020750207 100%Census 2020
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in New Sharon.
SafetyA+
New Sharon is safer than 98% of U.S. towns, by crime per resident
At 0 per 1,000 residents, New Sharon’s property crime rate is below both the Iowa town median (7.3) and the median of U.S. towns (9.9). No town among the 116 in Iowa we compare has a lower violent crime rate than New Sharon.
98%of U.S. towns report more crimeA+Safety Grade
| New Sharon | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0 per 1,000 residents | 7.3 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0 per 1,000 residents | 1.5 | 1.6 |
Violent crime per 1,000 residents
New Sharon0
Iowa2.4
U.S.3.3
Property crime per 1,000 residents
New Sharon0
Iowa12.1
U.S.15.5
98th
percentile among U.S. towns we grade
0
violent crimes reported in 2025
0
property crimes reported in 2025
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Work & commuteJobs & income grade D
Most of New Sharon’s workers commute out: the town has 0.2 jobs for each of them
Most working residents leave New Sharon for work: only 3% work in town. At $49,000, New Sharon’s median household income is against $69,000 in Iowa’s towns and $80,000 across U.S. towns. 14% of residents live below the poverty line in New Sharon.
3%work in town
| New Sharon | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 2.8% | 31% | 8% |
| Median household income | $49,000 | $69,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 14% | 11% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 19 minutes | 19 minutes | 25 minutes |
Where working residents work
In New Sharon3%
Pella20%
Oskaloosa10%
Des Moines6%
Grinnell3%
15 mi
median commute distance
108
jobs based in New Sharon
A commuter town
jobs vs. working residents
C
Walkability grade: more walkable than 30% of U.S. towns
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
HealthB+
New Sharon ranks healthier than 69% of the country’s towns
New Sharon beats the Iowa average on 5 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 1. 20% of New Sharon adults binge drink.
69%healthier than U.S. townsB+Health Grade
| New Sharon | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 20% | 16% |
| Food insecurity (CDC PLACES) | 8.9% | 12% | 14% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 18% | 19% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 10% | 12% | 12% |
32 measures vs. Iowa
5 better26 too close to call1 worse
| What stands out | New Sharon | IA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 8.9% | 12% |
| Fewer adults facing a utility shut-off | 5% | 6.4% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 9.9% | 8.7% |
Mahaska Health Partnership
11.9 mi away · emergency room
3 of 3
care shortages: primary care, dental, mental health
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Natural hazardsHazard risk grade B+
Inland flooding leads a low hazard risk in New Sharon
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 68% of U.S. communities.
32risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
Inland floodingDroughtTornadoes
4
federal disasters paid out here
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Climate
New Sharon has four seasons and pleasant summers
New Sharon has cold, snowy winters and warm summers. July afternoons reach 85°, January nights drop to 13° and about 30 inches of snow falls in a winter.
30″snow a winter
Typical low → high °F
Winter16–33°
Spring39–60°
Summer62–83°
Fall41–63°
Oct 16
typical first frost
Apr 21
typical last frost
+0.8°
vs. the 20th-century average
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
HousingCost of living grade A
The median rent in New Sharon is lower than in most of Iowa or the rest of the country
New Sharon’s median rent is $668 a month. Typical home values rose 12% in the year to September 2026.
$229KZillow home value
| New Sharon | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $668 a month | $911 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 75% | 70% | 73% |
Typical home value
New Sharon$229K
Iowa$237K
+12.4%
value change, 1 year
1
homes sold in May
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Keep exploring
Everything we know about New Sharon
19pages on New Sharon
The big questions
SchoolsBBeat 60% of IA districtsSafetyA+0 violent crimes per 1,000 residents (2025)HealthB+Better than IA on 5 of 32 CDC measuresCost of livingA$229K typical home · up 12.4% in a yearWork & commuteD$49K median household income · 108 jobs hereNatural hazardsB+FEMA risk higher than 32% of U.S. communities · inland flooding
Out and about
The story
After high school
Colleges nearby
2 within 15 miles of the center of New Sharon
William Penn UniversityUniversity or college · Private nonprofit · Oskaloosa11.1 mi$29,750 tuitionCentral CollegeUniversity or college · Private nonprofit · Pella14.8 mi$20,988 tuition
About 2 of every 100 New Sharon residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Iowa.
A commuter town
97% of working residents leave New Sharon for work
Where New Sharon’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
108jobs based in New Sharon
3%of working residents work in town
15 mimedian commute distance
Census LEHD 2023
About New Sharon
City in Iowa, United States
New Sharon is a city in Mahaska County, Iowa, United States. The population was 1,262 at the time of the 2020 census. The first building was erected in 1856 by Edward Quaintance.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 0.9 sq mi
- Elevation
- 873 ft
- ZIP code
- 50207
- Area code
- 641
Questions about New Sharon
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is New Sharon, IA expensive?
Not for the area. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades A.