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Valparaiso, Indiana

Valparaiso is a small city of about 35,000 people in Porter County, Indiana. It's the county seat. It has grown about 3% since 2020. A typical home costs about 3.8 years of the typical household's income, compared with 4.1 across the U.S. The nearest metro area of about a million people or more, Chicago, is about 41 miles away as the crow flies.

County seat

Population
35,177
up 3% since 2020
Typical home, 2020-24
$267,300
Porter County prices up 16% since 2022
Household income
$69,872
U.S.: $80,734
Prices, Chicago area
103.6
U.S. average = 100
Emergency room
5 miles
Valparaiso, IN
To Chicago
41 mi
straight line

The book's checklist

  • Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 3.6% above the U.S. average in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area.
  • More house for the moneyA typical home costs 3.8 years of the typical household's income here. Across the U.S. it's 4.1.
  • A safer neighborhood43 violent crimes were reported in 2025, about 1.2 per 1,000 people (U.S.: 3.3). Property crime: 8.2 per 1,000 (U.S.: 15.3).
  • Schools in town22 public schools: 15 elementary, 3 middle and 4 high schools.
  • A hospital close byNorthwest Health - Porter in Valparaiso, about 5 miles away, has the nearest emergency room.
  • Within reach of a big cityChicago is about 41 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 Valparaiso 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
$267,300U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then
Up 16%Porter County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities
$1,224 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income
$69,872U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them
58%U.S.: 65%
Typical property tax bill
$2,745 a yearIndiana: $1,614
Homes built before 1940
14%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010
12%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes
0%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices
103.6U.S. average = 100 (the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area)

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 16% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area, not Valparaiso 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
35,1772020: 34,138
Median age
37 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older
17%U.S.: 17%
Under 18
19%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more
41%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year
9%U.S.: 6%
College students
9%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 (25%); manufacturing (13%); arts, recreation, lodging and restaurants (12%)
Unemployment rate
4%U.S.: 5%
Average commute
25 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home
10%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line
15%U.S.: 12%

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

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Northwest Health - Porter, Valparaiso, IN, about 5 miles away. It's a general hospital. Medicare gives it 2 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

22 public schools in Valparaiso, run by Valparaiso Community Schools and East Porter County School Corp.

Colleges in or next to town: Valparaiso University (1,000 to 4,999 students).

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 cable, fiber or DSL internet
79%U.S.: 76%
Homes with any internet subscription
92%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
83°F
Days 90°F or hotter
9 a year
Nights at or below freezing
124 a year
Rain and melted snow
40.3 inches a year
Snow
40 inches a year
Elevation
795 feet

Weather station: Valparaiso Wtr Wks (2 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

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: Northwest Health - Porter, Gary, Chicago.

Porter County is in a metro area of 1 million people or more (USDA rural-urban code 1, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

17 places on the National Register of Historic Places, including the Valparaiso Downtown Commercial District.

National Park Service sites within about an hour:

  • Indiana Dunes National Park10 miles
  • Pullman National Historical Park32 miles
  • Emmett Till and Mamie Till-Mobley National Monument38 miles

Campus life. Check Valparaiso University's events calendar for games, concerts and plays open to the public.

Read about Valparaiso's history on Wikipedia.

Know Valparaiso?

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

Smaller places

  • Aberdeen, IN (unincorporated)1,490 people, 4 miles
  • Salt Creek Commons, IN (unincorporated)1,843 people, 5 miles
  • Wheeler, IN (unincorporated)283 people, 7 miles
  • Malden, IN (unincorporated)137 people, 7 miles
  • Lake Eliza, IN (unincorporated)545 people, 8 miles
  • Wanatah, IN972 people, 9 miles
  • Dune Acres, IN230 people, 12 miles
  • Union Mills, IN (unincorporated)233 people, 14 miles

Sources

  1. U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025)
  2. U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates
  3. Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions)
  4. U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
  5. FBI, Crime in the United States, Table 8 (offenses known to law enforcement by city)
  6. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information
  7. National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal)
  8. National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024
  9. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020
  10. U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program
  11. National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places listings
  12. National Park Service, park unit boundaries
  13. USDA Economic Research Service, Rural-Urban Continuum Codes, 2023
  14. U.S. Census Bureau, 2025 Gazetteer files and 2020 urban areas

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.