Census-designated place · Starke County, Indiana

Koontz Lake, Indiana

Koontz Lake is a census-designated place in Starke County, Indiana, part of the Plymouth, IN metro area. It has 1,182 residents. Koontz Lake, Indiana has a quality-of-life score of 34 out of 100 (low), ranking #10,387 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Indiana it ranks #213 of 353 cities and towns. It ranks best on drought exposure (low), home price to income ratio (low) and public libraries (high). It ranks worst on hospital quality rating (low), primary care physicians (low) and preventable hospital stays (high).

34Low

Quality-of-life score: #10,387 of 15,651 cities and towns
Indiana: #213 of 353 in IN
Population: 1,182 (2020-2024)
Land area: 4 mi²
Density: 335.4 /mi²
FIPS code: 1840464

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 73 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.

Open in the map

Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US cities and towns.

Safety40#9,337/15,637
Economy40#9,443/15,631
Housing98#329/14,977
Health27#11,416/15,609
Healthcare20#12,517/15,650
Environment68#4,903/15,453
Education29#11,119/15,649
Infrastructure28#11,267/15,650
Community46#8,484/15,651
Leisure & amenities5#14,824/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Koontz Lake, Indiana ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Starke County value” are the county’s: the source publishes no figure for this city or town, and the county holding most of its residents stands in.

Strengths

Drought exposure · low0%
98/100Indiana 19%United States 43%Oct 2025–Sep 2026National Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAAStarke County value
Home price to income ratio · low1.8×
95/100Indiana 3.0×United States 4.1×2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077
Public libraries · high2.1 /10k
92/100Indiana 0.6 /10kUnited States 0.5 /10k2024Institute of Museum and Library ServicesStarke County value
Job growth · high2.6%
92/100Indiana -0.1%United States 0.1%2026 Q1U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsProvisional dataStarke County value
Pharmacies · high2.6 /10k
91/100Indiana 1.5 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsStarke County value
Time spent in the emergency room · low114 min
90/100Indiana 148 minUnited States 170 minOct 2024–Sep 2025Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesStarke County value

Weaknesses

Hospital quality rating · low1.0
1/100Indiana 3.4United States 3.2Jul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesStarke County value
Primary care physicians · low13 /100k
2/100Indiana 66 /100kUnited States 76 /100k2022University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteStarke County value
Preventable hospital stays · high5,026 /100k
2/100Indiana 3,202 /100kUnited States 2,769 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteStarke County value
Public EV charging ports · low0.0 /10k
3/100Indiana 3.2 /10kUnited States 7.6 /10kOct 2026U.S. Department of EnergyStarke County value
Gyms and fitness centers · low0.0 /10k
4/100Indiana 1.1 /10kUnited States 1.3 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsStarke County value
Average weekly wage · low$885
4/100Indiana $1,251United States $1,5142025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsStarke County value

Trends

The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.

PopulationFalling
1,445 (2015-2019) → 1,182 (2020-2024)
−18%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Average commute timeWorsening
27.6 min (2015-2019) → 54.6 min (2020-2024)
+98%5 yearsCensus table B08013US 26.9 min → 26.4 min
High school diploma or higherImproving
80.6% (2015-2019) → 95.7% (2020-2024)
+15 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 88.0% → 89.6%
Median household incomeImproving
$47,609 (2015-2019) → $80,538 (2020-2024)
+69%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Rent-burdened householdsWorsening
22.0% (2015-2019) → 30.4% (2020-2024)
+8.5 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Uninsured residents (under 65)Improving
7.8% (2015-2019) → 2.0% (2020-2024)
−5.8 pts5 yearsCensus table B27010US 10.8% → 9.8%

What changed in five years

How each measure moved between two periods about five years apart, read against whether more or less is better, the published margin of error and the same change in other places.

Over about five years, Koontz Lake, Indiana improved on 1 of 10 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 9 moved within the margin of error and 0 barely changed.

Earlier (2015-2019)
Latest (2020-2024)
Lower standingHigher standing

Position is the place's standing among cities and towns: further right is better, whichever way the measure counts.

Improved1

Household income+69%$47,609 → $80,538

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 10 measures

Change of every measure of Koontz Lake, Indiana between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Bachelor's degree or higher	15.9%2015-2019	19.2%2020-2024	+3.3 points	Within the margin of error	54%
Broadband subscriptions	80.5%2015-2019	80.9%2020-2024	+0.4 points	Within the margin of error	9%
Effective property tax rate	0.83%2015-2019	0.62%2020-2024	−0.2 points	Within the margin of error	62%
High school diploma or higher	80.6%2015-2019	95.7%2020-2024	+15 points	Within the margin of error	99%
Home price to income ratio	2.2×2015-2019	1.8×2020-2024	−0.5×	Within the margin of error	93%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4002015-2019	0.3612020-2024	−0.039	Within the margin of error	79%
Median household income	$47,6092015-2019	$80,5382020-2024	+69%	Improved	94%
Poverty rate	10.1%2015-2019	11.0%2020-2024	+0.9 points	Within the margin of error	35%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent as share of income	12.6%2015-2019	14.3%2020-2024	+1.7 points	Within the margin of error	42%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 14640 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.

Sources: American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. Values are the latest and the one five years earlier of the same publisher dataset; datasets that changed publisher in between are never compared.

Survey estimates (American Community Survey) compare the two most recent 5-year windows that do not share years, so the margin of error of the difference holds. The 2015-2019 window predates the pandemic and 2020-2024 includes it.
A change counts only when it is larger than 1.645 times the square root of the two standard errors squared, summed (a 90% margin). Measures published without a margin must change by at least 5% to count.
“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 15651 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.
Standing is a percentile among the same places: 0 is the lowest value on the measure (or the worst when lower is better), 100 the best.

Cities and towns like Koontz Lake, Indiana five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Koontz Lake, Indiana in the earlier period, ranked by how many measures improved beyond the margin of error, minus how many declined. A comparison of published data, not a forecast and not advice.

For comparison, Koontz Lake, Indiana itself moved +13.1 points in standing on average over the same 8 measures (standings of all places average about zero).

How the ranking works

Similarity is the root-mean-square difference of standings in the earlier period over the measures most places have. Places are ranked by measures that improved beyond the margin of error minus those that declined (a count that estimation noise in small places cannot inflate), then by the mean change of standing over the measures a place has in both periods. Only places with more improvements than declines and a rise in standing are listed. Standings are relative, so a place can improve in absolute terms and still lose standing.

Who lives here

Age, race and education of residents, from the American Community Survey. Shares are of all residents (age), residents of every origin (race) or adults 25 and over (education).

Age and sex

1,182 residents (±372)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†

Income

How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.

Household income

654 households (±177)

Koontz Lake, Indiana
Indiana share

Under $25k21%†136
$25k–50k8.3%†54
$50k–75k

Homes

Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.

Owners and renters

654 households (±177)

Koontz Lake, Indiana
Indiana share

Own88%578
Rent12%†76

No change since 2015–2019 is larger than the margin of error.

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

Getting to work

How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.

How people get to work

493 workers (±176)

Koontz Lake, Indiana
Indiana share

Drive alone70%†346
Carpool24%†119
Public transit

Jobs and pay

What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes pay by metro area, not by county or city. The metro area page lists its largest occupations and lets you look up any job.

Pay in the Plymouth, IN

Local businesses

Employer businesses and sole proprietors by industry, per resident and against the state and the nation. Counts of businesses next to counts of people, not a measure of demand.

The Census Bureau publishes business counts by county, not by city, so these are the figures of Starke County, the county holding most of Koontz Lake's residents.

Starke County has 319 employer establishments, 137 for every 10,000 residents (0.55× the US rate of 248; 0.60× Indiana's), with 3,394 paid employees at an average annual pay of $42,897. The Census Bureau also counts 1,218 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 319; 1,218 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 137; US 248 · Indiana 226
Paid employees: 3,394
Average annual pay: $42,897; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of Starke County by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Restaurants and other eating places	22	9.4	0.51×Fewer than typical	351	$17,806	8
Specialty trade contractors	22	9.4	0.61×Fewer than typical	114	$57,702	138
Religious organizations	17	7.3	1.31×More than typical	80	$17,975	—
Ambulatory health care services	16	6.9	0.33×Fewer than typical	153	$53,000	28
Truck transportation	14	6	1.19×About typical	35	$45,457	88
Automotive repair and maintenance	13	5.6	1.11×About typical	46	$50,391	33
Full-service restaurants	13	5.6	0.73×Fewer than typical	164	$14,774	3
Construction of buildings	12	5.1	0.68×Fewer than typical	15	$69,333	68
Gasoline stations	12	5.1	1.59×More than typical	75	$29,133	—
Lessors of real estate	11	4.7	0.38×Fewer than typical	17	$21,529	106
Building equipment contractors	10	4.3	0.71×Fewer than typical	70	$68,071	28
General merchandise stores	10	4.3	2.43×More than typical	195	$37,308	10

Rank places for an industry Open Starke County

County Business Patterns (2023); Nonemployer Statistics (2024)

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 23,309 residents here, 336,755,052 in the United States. County Business Patterns counts establishments in 2023; the Nonemployer Statistics count businesses in 2024.
“More than typical” is a density at least 1.25 times the nation's per resident, “fewer” at most 0.8 times, with at least 10 establishments. It compares counts of businesses with counts of people: it says nothing about demand, incomes, size, quality or profit, and visitors and commuters are not residents.
The Census Bureau adds noise to employment and payroll to protect confidentiality, and withholds some figures: an industry with few establishments can show employees or pay as unavailable.
Industries overlap: a narrower industry (full-service restaurants) is part of a broader one (restaurants), so the rows do not add up.
Industries follow the North American Industry Classification System; the two surveys use different editions (NAICS 2017 and 2022), which this page matches industry by industry.

Federal contracts performed here

No federal contract obligations recorded here in FY2026.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Koontz Lake is mostly in Starke County.

See federal money in Starke County

Representation in Congress

Members serving today, with their record in the current Congress (party-unity votes cast with their caucus, roll calls missed). Not a grade.

Koontz Lake, Indiana is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Rudy Yakym IIIR-IN-2 · 100% of residentsWith party 100%Missed 0.0%

Senate

Explore Congress The 2026 races

County

A city can lie in several counties. Some indicators are published for counties only: the page marks them.

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Plymouth, IN41

Other cities and towns in Starke County

Largest first.

Similar cities and towns

Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).

Data and sources

Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.

PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
Population Estimates ProgramU.S. Census Bureau · release 2025
Small Area Health Insurance EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
Small Area Income and Poverty EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement

JSON · /api/v1/places/1840464

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends