Nebraska city guide
Moving From California to Elkhorn, NE
A west Omaha growth corridor, formally annexed into the city of Omaha but retaining its own identity, ZIP code, and rapidly expanding schools.
Housing comparison
California versus Elkhorn, side by side
- Median home value
- $725,800
- $462,800
- Median annual property tax
- $5,114
- not available
- Median monthly cost, owners with a mortgage
- $2,844
- not available
- Population
- 39.0 million (state)
- 16,422
Figures are US Census Bureau American Community Survey 2020 to 2024 5-Year Estimates for the city place. Property tax and monthly cost rows cover owner-occupied units with a mortgage, so they describe what current owners pay, not what a new buyer would pay at today's prices. California column is the statewide baseline used across this site.
Why Californians look at Elkhorn
Elkhorn was an independent small town on the Elkhorn River until Omaha annexed it in 2007. Today it functions as west Omaha's newest growth corridor, still identifiable by its own ZIP code, its own historic Main Street, and the still-independent Elkhorn Public Schools district, even though it is legally part of the city of Omaha.
The area's appeal is almost entirely new construction. Subdivisions have expanded steadily westward for two decades, and the pace has not slowed, which means buyers get modern floor plans, energy codes, and amenities that an older Omaha neighborhood cannot offer at any price.
The figures here describe the Elkhorn ZIP code area (68022), which runs noticeably higher than the Omaha citywide median, reflecting its position as one of the metro's premium new-construction suburbs rather than a typical Omaha neighborhood.
Elkhorn fits you if
- You want new construction, current floor plans, and a growing suburb rather than an established older neighborhood.
- You want the highly regarded and independent Elkhorn Public Schools district.
- You can afford a premium over the Omaha citywide median for newer housing stock and a specific school boundary.
- You want proximity to west Omaha retail and employment corridors along the West Dodge Road and 168th Street areas.
Look elsewhere if
- You want Omaha's lowest prices; Elkhorn carries one of the highest medians in the metro.
- You want an established, mature neighborhood with older trees and architectural variety.
- You want to be close to downtown Omaha; Elkhorn is a 25 to 35 minute drive from the urban core.
- You want a walkable, mixed-use environment; Elkhorn is car-dependent suburban development.
Housing in Elkhorn
The overwhelming majority of housing in the Elkhorn area was built from the 1990s onward, with construction continuing actively today in subdivisions pushing toward 204th Street and beyond. Homes tend toward larger two-story floor plans on suburban lots, with a smaller historic core near the original Main Street.
Recent estimates for the 68022 ZIP code put the median home value at roughly $462,800, well above the Omaha citywide figure, reflecting both new construction costs and strong demand for the school district. Median household income in the area is correspondingly high.
Because new construction continues, buyers have real choice between resale homes in established Elkhorn subdivisions and new builds farther west, which is unusual flexibility compared with older, built-out parts of the metro.
Work and the local economy
Elkhorn itself is primarily residential, and most working residents commute to employment centers elsewhere in the Omaha metro, particularly the West Dodge Road, Aksarben, and downtown corridors where finance, insurance, and corporate headquarters jobs are concentrated.
Local employment within Elkhorn centers on retail, restaurants, and services that have grown alongside the housing, plus the school district itself, which is one of the fastest-growing in the state and a significant local employer in its own right.
Buyers should treat Elkhorn as a place to live within the broader Omaha job market rather than a self-contained economy.
Climate and setting
Elkhorn shares the Omaha metro's continental climate, with warm and humid summers, cold winters, and the same spring severe-weather season, including tornado risk, common to eastern Nebraska.
The area sits along the Elkhorn River valley on the western edge of the metro, with rolling terrain that gives some newer subdivisions walkout basements and creek-side lots.
As a newer, more open suburb, Elkhorn has less mature tree canopy than older Omaha neighborhoods, though landscaping fills in within a decade or two of construction.
Getting around, care, and schools
- Commercial air
- Eppley Airfield is about 25 to 30 minutes east via West Dodge Road or the West Dodge Expressway.
- Highways
- West Dodge Road (US 6) and the West Dodge Expressway connect to Interstate 680 and the rest of the metro.
- Hospital
- CHI Health Midlands and Nebraska Medicine and Methodist facilities in west Omaha are a short drive; no major hospital sits within Elkhorn itself.
- Public schools
- Elkhorn Public Schools, an independent and fast-growing district serving the area.
- Higher education
- University of Nebraska Omaha and Metropolitan Community College are roughly 20 to 25 minutes east.
- Setting
- Elkhorn River valley on the western edge of the Omaha metro.
The trade-offs
- Prices run well above the Omaha citywide median; you are paying for new construction and a specific school boundary.
- The commute into downtown Omaha or the airport is meaningfully longer than from central or east Omaha suburbs.
- The area is car-dependent with limited walkable retail beyond the historic Main Street core.
- No major hospital sits within Elkhorn itself; serious medical needs mean a drive east.
Other Nebraska towns people compare
Omaha
Nebraska's largest city and the deepest job market in the state, anchored by Berkshire Hathaway, Union Pacific, and a diversified Fortune 500 base.
Lincoln
Nebraska's capital and second-largest city, built around state government and the University of Nebraska, with a walkable core and consistently low unemployment.
Papillion
A southwest Omaha suburb in Sarpy County consistently cited among the best places to raise a family, with strong schools and a short commute into Omaha.
Kearney
A central Nebraska hub city on Interstate 80, built around the University of Nebraska at Kearney and a regional hospital, with some of the lowest entry prices in the state.
Statewide figures, tax detail, and the full Nebraska picture are on the Nebraska page. Compare property, income, and sales tax across all 49 destination states on Taxes, and see where Californians are actually moving on Stats.
Sources
- US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020 to 2024 5-Year Estimates, table B25077 (median home value), retrieved via Census Reporter, September 3, 2026.
- US Census Bureau, ACS 2020 to 2024 5-Year Estimates, table B25103 (median real estate taxes paid, owner-occupied units with a mortgage), retrieved September 3, 2026.
- US Census Bureau, ACS 2020 to 2024 5-Year Estimates, table B25088 (median selected monthly owner costs, owner-occupied units with a mortgage), retrieved September 3, 2026.
- US Census Bureau, ACS 2020 to 2024 5-Year Estimates, table B01003 (total population), retrieved September 3, 2026.
- Elkhorn Public Schools district profile, epsne.org.
- City of Omaha annexation history, omaha-cityclerk.com.
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