Living in Converse, Indiana: homes, schools and costs

The book's checklist

Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 11.3% below the U.S. average in the parts of Indiana outside metro areas.
More house for the moneyThe Census survey didn't reach enough homes in Converse to say.
A safer neighborhoodThe FBI has no 2025 figures for Converse itself. Many small towns are patrolled by the county sheriff, so call the sheriff's office and ask what calls they get most.
Schools in town3 public schools: 1 elementary, 1 middle and 1 high school.
A hospital close byMarion General Hospital in Marion, about 11 miles away, has the nearest emergency room.
Within reach of a big cityIndianapolis is about 57 miles away as the crow flies. The book suggests staying within about 60 miles if you'll miss big-city sports, concerts and theater.

A check means Converse meets the rule of thumb from Frank and Dave's book. An empty box isn't a deal breaker: it's something to weigh for your family. A question mark means there isn't enough data.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Typical home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024: $103,800U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then: Up 18%Miami County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities: $569 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Homes owned by the people living in them: 79%U.S.: 65%
Homes built before 1940: 21%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010: 7%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes: 0%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices: 88.7U.S. average = 100 (the parts of Indiana outside metro areas)

Home values and rents are what households told the Census Bureau across 2020 to 2024, so they trail today's market: county prices have moved up 18% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the parts of Indiana outside metro areas, not Converse alone. Check current listings before you budget.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates; Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions); U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.

The people

Population, 2025 estimate: 1,1282020: 1,155
Median age: 38.8 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older: 25%U.S.: 17%
Under 18: 21%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more: 12%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year: 4%U.S.: 6%
College students: 14%share of all residents

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025); U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Work

Biggest lines of work: Schools, health care and social services (20%); retail (11%)
Average commute: 30 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home: 3%U.S.: 15%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Marion General Hospital, Marion, IN, about 11 miles away. It's a general hospital. Medicare gives it 3 of 5 stars.

Look up doctors, clinics and the hospitals themselves on Medicare's Care Compare. Ask where the most serious cases are sent.

Sources: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information.

Schools

3 public schools in Converse, run by Oak Hill United School Corp.

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on Indiana's school report card.

Sources: National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal); National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024.

Internet

Homes with any internet subscription: 87%U.S.: 91%

Before you buy, look up the address on the FCC's National Broadband Map to see which providers serve it.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Weather

January average low: 18°F
July average high: 84°F
Days 90°F or hotter: 14 a year
Nights at or below freezing: 126 a year
Rain and melted snow: 41.8 inches a year
Snow: 24 inches a year
Elevation: 817 feet

Weather station: Marion 2 N (11 miles away). Averages for 1991 to 2020.

Sources: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020; U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program.

Getting around

Marion General HospitalEmergency room11

Kokomo, INCity of 60,00015

Indianapolis, INMetro of 2.2 million57

Straight-line miles. The road is always longer, and as the book says, an interstate at 70 is a different trip from a farm road at 45. Check the real drive: Marion General Hospital, Kokomo, Indianapolis.

Miami County is outside any metro area, with 5,000 to 20,000 people in its towns, next to a metro area (USDA rural-urban code 6, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

3 places on the National Register of Historic Places, including the Converse Commercial Historic District.

Read about Converse's history on Wikipedia.

Know Converse?

Tell us what a visitor shouldn't miss, and what living there is really like. Write to Main Street at mainstreet@smalltownguide.com. The best notes from people who know the town will be added here.

Nearby

Straight-line miles.

Small towns

Sweetser, IN1,100 people, 6 miles
Greentown, IN2,400 people, 8 miles
Marion, IN28,000 people, 11 miles
Jonesboro, IN1,500 people, 15 miles
Kokomo, IN60,000 people, 15 miles
Wabash, IN10,200 people, 16 miles

Smaller places

Mier, IN (unincorporated)210 people, 3 miles
Amboy, IN309 people, 3 miles
Swayzee, IN904 people, 6 miles
Herbst, IN (unincorporated)309 people, 6 miles
Somerset, IN (unincorporated)221 people, 7 miles
La Fontaine, IN819 people, 10 miles
Bennetts Switch, IN (unincorporated)141 people, 12 miles
Miami, IN (unincorporated)409 people, 12 miles

Sources

Census survey figures are estimates with a margin of error; we leave out any figure whose margin is too wide to be useful. Data last gathered October 5, 2026. See something wrong? Write to mainstreet@smalltownguide.com.