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Lake Hallie, Wisconsin

Lake Hallie is a suburb of about 7,400 people in Chippewa County, Wisconsin, in the Eau Claire area. It has grown about 3% since 2020. A typical home costs about 3.4 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, Minneapolis, is about 91 miles away as the crow flies.

Suburb of Eau Claire

Population
7,396
up 2.8% since 2020
Typical home, 2020-24
$292,100
Chippewa County prices up 27% since 2022
Household income
$86,740
U.S.: $80,734
Prices, Eau Claire area
92.8
U.S. average = 100
Emergency room
6 miles
Eau Claire, WI
To Minneapolis
91 mi
straight line

The book's checklist

  • Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 7.2% below the U.S. average in the Eau Claire metro area.
  • More house for the moneyA typical home costs 3.4 years of the typical household's income here. Across the U.S. it's 4.1.
  • A safer neighborhoodThe FBI has no 2025 figures for Lake Hallie 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 town2 public schools. No public high school in town: the nearest is Chippewa Falls High, about 3 miles away.
  • A hospital close byMayo Clinic Health System Eau Claire Hospital in Eau Claire, about 6 miles away, has the nearest emergency room.
  • Within reach of a big cityMinneapolis is about 91 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 Lake Hallie 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.

What kind of town

A suburb, not a stand-alone small town

Lake Hallie runs into the built-up area around Eau Claire (Census Bureau, 2020 urban areas). We include suburbs under 20,000 people because some still feel like small towns, but daily life here is closer to the suburbs than to the towns Frank and Dave's book describes. Weigh it against towns farther out.

The book sorts small towns into six types. These labels come only from the numbers; take the quiz to see which type fits your family.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Typical home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024
$292,100U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then
Up 27%Chippewa County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities
$1,223 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income
$86,740U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them
71%U.S.: 65%
Typical property tax bill
$3,273 a yearWisconsin: $3,792
Homes built before 1940
4%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010
19%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes
1%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices
92.8U.S. average = 100 (the Eau Claire 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 27% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the Eau Claire metro area, not Lake Hallie 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
7,3962020: 7,192
Median age
40.8 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older
14%U.S.: 17%
Under 18
19%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more
31%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year
7%U.S.: 6%

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%); manufacturing (18%); retail (15%)
Unemployment rate
1%U.S.: 5%
Average commute
19 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home
12%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line
9%U.S.: 12%

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

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Mayo Clinic Health System Eau Claire Hospital, Eau Claire, WI, about 6 miles away. It's a general hospital. Medicare gives it 5 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

2 public schools in Lake Hallie, run by Chippewa Falls Area Unified School District. The nearest public high school is Chippewa Falls High, about 3 miles away.

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on Wisconsin'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
77%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
6°F
July average high
83°F
Days 90°F or hotter
10 a year
Nights at or below freezing
163 a year
Rain and melted snow
33 inches a year
Snow
55 inches a year
Elevation
900 feet

Weather station: Eau Claire Rgnl Ap (4 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: Mayo Clinic Health System Eau Claire Hospital, Eau Claire, Minneapolis.

Chippewa County is in a metro area of fewer than 250,000 people (USDA rural-urban code 3, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

Read about Lake Hallie's history on Wikipedia.

Know Lake Hallie?

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

  • Seymour, WI (unincorporated)1,531 people, 5 miles
  • Jim Falls, WI (unincorporated)339 people, 13 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.