ZIP Code 51520 — Arion city, IA Demographics & Data

ZIP code 51520 covers Arion, IA in Crawford County with a population of about 235.

At a glance, the area shows median age of 63.9 versus a U.S. median of about 38.9.

It sits in telephone area code 712; U.S. House district IA-4; the OMAHA media market.

Arion, IA reads as a military / base-oriented community on US5’s intent model (elevated veteran share (22.8%) and/or base-related place names). Service members and families often look up Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) rates, on-base mail (PSC / P.O. Box) addresses, and nearby ZIP demographics when relocating.

US5 shows 2026 DoD BAH locality rates for this ZIP’s Military Housing Area on this page (pay grade × with/without dependents). Treat the table as a planning reference and confirm entitlement with your finance office or the official DTMO BAH lookup.

Median household income in ZIP 51520 is about $58,547 — about 22% below the U.S. median ($75,149).

On socioeconomic markers, US5 shows a poverty rate of 1.7%; unemployment rate near 0.0%; 1.6% of adults with a bachelor’s degree or higher (about 32.1 points below the national share (33.7%)).

Labor and commute patterns include leading industry context around Administrative support, Transportation, and Food services; about 2.1% of workers reporting work-from-home (about 13.1 points below the U.S. share (15.2%)); a mean commute of about 46.0 minutes (U.S. average near 26.8).

Median home value is about $141,100 — about 59% below the U.S. median home value ($348,079).

Housing tenure and rents show median gross rent around $625 (about 46% below the U.S. median rent ($1,163)), and owner-occupancy near 91.3% (about 25.9 points above the national owner-occupancy rate (65.4%)).

To comfortably buy a median-priced home in ZIP 51520 in Arion, IA, a household would need roughly $39,000 in annual income under a 20% down, 30-year loan at 6.8% (illustrative), keeping housing costs near 28% of income. Estimated monthly PITI is about $906. That sits below the local median household income ($58,547), suggesting the typical household income is closer to a workable buy-in level under these assumptions. Rates, taxes, insurance, and HOA fees vary — treat this as a planning estimate, not a lender quote.

FEMA’s National Risk Index rates natural-hazard risk for Arion city, IA as Relatively Low (composite score 60.8), which is near the middle of the national distribution. The strongest component scores on US5 are flood (56.1) and wildfire (46.2). These scores are county-linked NRI values published for planning context — all ZIP codes in the same county share the same composite score on US5. Useful when comparing insurance and disaster exposure across areas, not a substitute for a parcel-level flood or fire determination.

Climate normals for Arion city, IA show little to no average snow and around 33.6 inches of annual precipitation.

IRS migration statistics show a net inflow of about 13 for ZIP 51520 (Arion city, IA) on US5’s published series — a signal of people/tax filers moving in relative to those leaving. Inflows often track job growth, housing demand, or lifestyle migration; treat the figure as a directional indicator rather than a precise headcount.