Polk County is home to 5,220 residents and includes Stromsburg and Osceola · Updated November 2026
How common is property crime in Polk County?
Polk County has less property crime than most US neighborhoods: an A+, safer than the neighborhoods where 99% of Americans live. Theft makes up 57% of it. Burglary, the crime most likely to reach into a home, grades A+, and vehicle theft grades A+.
A+
Property crime CrimeGrade™
Safety score 995 of 1,000Less property crime than nearly all US neighborhoodsi What this means
99% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more property crime than Polk County as a whole, and 1% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a property crime safety score of 823, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. Polk County scores 995.
Crime is concentrated in a small share of places, so most neighborhoods score high on the 0 to 1,000 scale. That is why a score in the 800s can still mean more property crime than most US neighborhoods.
How to read the map: each area's color compares its property crime with the homes, parked cars and people there, on one national scale, from green for the least to red for the most. Each area gets its own color, so a busy shopping center can show red while the homes beside it stay green. The interactive maps load faster on a strong connection. Compare high speed internet in Polk County, NE at ISP Reports.
Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in Polk County, and anyone thinking about buying or renting a home there.
Business and enterprise customers: this free map shows neighborhood areas. CrimeGrade™ business reports map crime at about 66-meter detail and estimate it for one address and type of business. See business reports
Property crime rates and types in Polk County
CrimeGrade™ estimates Polk County has about 5.3 reported property crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, 78% less than the US as a whole and 78% less than Nebraska.
All property crime
Burglary
Vehicle theft
Reported crimes a year, per 1,000 residents. Property crime here includes vandalism, which the FBI's property crime rate leaves out.
Theft is the most common property crime in Polk County, about 57% of the total, followed by vandalism and burglary.
Each CrimeGrade™ here compares a property crime with what it affects: homes for burglary and arson, parked cars for vehicle theft, people and parking for theft, homes and businesses for vandalism. Rates count crimes per 1,000 residents.
Select a crime's name to see its map above. CrimeGrade™ business reports map each crime at about 66-meter detail.
Property crime in Polk County and nearby counties
Polk County has less property crime than 9 of its 10 nearest counties; only Merrick County has less.
Nearest first, with each place's distance from Polk County. Beside each property crime CrimeGrade™ is its safety score, from 0 to 1,000 (higher is safer).
Compared with counties of similar size and density, Polk County is safer than 96% of them.
Among the traits that tend to go with property crime, two set Polk County apart: it has 30 jobs for every 100 residents, against 45 for the US as a whole, and 48% of the land where people live lit at night, against 78% nationally. Places like that tend to report less theft, and it runs low here.
JobsJobs draw daytime crowds. Places with many jobs tend to report more theft.30 for every 100 residentsUS: 45Lower than for 88% of Americans
Transit serviceBuses and trains an hour at the evening rush. Places with busy transit tend to report more theft. BestNeighborhood's Transit Grade for Polk County: F (0 of 100).NoneUS: noneLower than for 86% of Americans
Walk GradeBestNeighborhood's grade for getting through daily life on foot, traced along real walking routes to shops, schools and parks. Walkable places tend to report more theft. 84% of residents here live in car-dependent areas.D (12 of 100)US: 21Lower than for 71% of Americans
Show all 6
Lit at nightSatellite images show which neighborhoods are lit at night, a sign of busy streets and businesses. Brightly lit places tend to report more theft and vandalism.48% where people liveUS: 78%Lower than for 85% of Americans
Stores and restaurantsShops and restaurants draw crowds and parked cars. Places with many stores tend to report more theft.9.6 per 1,000 residentsUS: 10.5Lower than for 67% of Americans
Empty homesSeasonal and vacation homes are left out. Places with many empty homes tend to report more burglary and arson.7.2% of homesUS: 7.1%Higher than for 63% of Americans
These traits tend to go with more or less crime; none of them causes it on its own. Sources: Census job counts and housing figures, OpenStreetMap and Overture business listings, CrimeGrade™ parking estimates, NASA night-light imagery, US Forest Service tree cover, EPA transit data and BestNeighborhood's Walk Grade.
What property crime costs Polk County
Property crime costs Polk County about $190,000 a year, or $36 per resident and about $87 per household: the value of what is stolen or damaged, plus the police, courts and prisons that respond.
Cost of property crime per resident, per year
How the cost breaks down
Pain and suffering add little to the cost of property crime, so this is close to its full cost.
Crime
Cost a year
Per resident
Burglary
$17,000
$3
Theft
$81,000
$16
Vehicle theft
$15,000
$3
Arson
$12,000
$2
Vandalism
$62,000
$12
Total
$190,000
$36
How CrimeGrade™ works
The property crime CrimeGrade™ covers burglary, theft, car theft, arson and vandalism, from A+ for the least crime to F for the most, on one scale for the whole country.
It weighs each property crime against what it affects: homes for burglary and arson, parked cars for car theft, and the people and parking around stores for theft.
The rates on this page count crimes for every 1,000 people who live here, the way police departments report them.
Comparisons with US neighborhoods use the Census Bureau's block groups, small areas of about 1,400 residents, and count the people who live in each. The figures count crimes reported to police; many crimes, shoplifting above all, never are. Behind the grades, CrimeGrade™ tested 21,607 factors from 125 data families. For business owners, paid CrimeGrade™ location reports estimate crime at a single address for each type of business.
Where the numbers come from
Crime reports that police departments file with the FBI
State crime records and city crime data, where they are published
Published research on what crime costs victims and communities
These are estimates of reported crime for whole areas, not a record of what happened on any one street. CrimeGrade™ updates them once a year and provides them free and without guarantee. Check local sources before you rely on them for a decision.
