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Willow Lake vs Collins Township

Next-door neighbors. The biggest differences: street grid (71.3× in Willow Lake) and home values (2.2× in Collins Township).

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Willow Lake, SDKnown for its schoolsSouth Dakota · 433 people
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Collins Township, SDKnown for its schoolsClark County · 203 people
Where each one shines

Two towns, two different strengths

What each town does better than most of its state (not better than each other). Tap one to see the page behind it.

The biggest differences

Where they part ways

The rows below where the towns are furthest apart, beyond the Census margin of error. The full table is further down.

★ What stands out · Monthly cost

A typical home costs $1,290 more a month in Collins Township

A typical home in each town, bought with 20% down at 6.3% for 30 years, plus property tax at the town’s own rate and insurance. Change the numbers to fit you.

Willow Lake$970/mo
Typical home $149K (Census) · tax rate 1.48% · or rent about $815/mo · Housing →
Collins Township$2,260/mo
Typical home $334K (Census) · tax rate est. 1.8% · Housing →

The difference: $1,290 a month, about $15,500 a year, between Collins Township and Willow Lake.

Estimates, not a quote: your price, rate, tax bill and insurance will differ. Tax rate = the Census median tax bill over the median home value.

Where they are

Willow Lake and Collins Township share a border

And the people who already live in one and work in the other.

Willow LakeCollins TownshipWillow LakeCollins Township
Willow Lake ↔ Collins Township3.3 miles apart · They share a border
Who commutes between them
5 Collins Township residents work in Willow Lake (6.8% of its workers)
Work & commute in Collins Township →
Report cards

Grades and rankings, side by side

Our letter grades for safety, schools and health, then every South Dakota ranking list both towns are on. A grade is one measure; read the page behind it.

Life in each

What daily life feels like in each

The weather, the land, the history and the people, row by row. None of it is a grade: more snow is a plus to a skier.

Seasons
Willow LakeCollins Township
Snow a year48″48″
Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)39th39th
Outdoors & history
Willow LakeCollins Township
Trails—7 mi
Conserved land—16.3%
National Register places1—
Community
Willow LakeCollins Township
Posts this month00
Neighbors joined00

A dot marks the most on each row. Climate: NOAA 1991–2020 normals at the nearest station. Hazard risk: FEMA National Risk Index, expected yearly damage vs U.S. towns.

Everything, side by side

What matters to you?

Pick a few. Those rows jump to the top and the best fit on each is marked. There’s no overall score: what matters is up to you.

Willow LakeCollins Township
People
Population 433Highest 203Lowest
Median age 17.5±6.9Lowest 54% below SD 56.5±6Highest 49% above SD
Kids under 18 51%±30.2Highest SD: 24.2% 24.1%±9.3Lowest SD: 24.2%
Willow Lake and Collins Township are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+ 8.8%±4.7Lowest SD: 18% 20.2%±14.2Highest SD: 18%
Collins Township and Willow Lake are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 18.7%Highest SD: 31.9% 11.9%Lowest SD: 31.9%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 3%±2.1Highest SD: 5% 0%±7Lowest SD: 5%
Willow Lake and Collins Township are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian $72,875±$19kHighest about the SD average $64,643±$20kLowest 14% below SD
Willow Lake and Collins Township are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $149,000±$52kLowest 42% below SD $334,400±$40kHighest 30% above SD
Rentmedian gross, monthly $815±$256 14% below SD —
Property taxmedian, yearly $2,212 19% below SD —
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 4.8%±41.7 SD: 39.8% —
Below poverty line 1.2%Lowest SD: 11.9% 5.6%Highest SD: 11.9%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes 62.2%Lowest SD: 68.6% 96.6%Highest SD: 68.6%
Typical home builtmedian year 1949Lowest 31 yrs older than SD 1990Highest 10 yrs newer than SD
Getting to work
Average commuteone way 23 minHighest 26% above SD 17 minLowest 6% below SD
Work from home 15.6%±18.7Lowest SD: 9.7% 40%±29.7Highest SD: 9.7%
Collins Township and Willow Lake are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Work in townworking residents 5.8%Highest 0%Lowest
Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 30.8 miHighest 29.8 miLowest
Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 1.03Highest 0.43Lowest
Top workplaceoutside town Clark (17%)Clark (24%)
Between these townsresidents who work in the others Few work in Collins Township7% work in Willow Lake
Outdoors
Conserved landshare of the town 0%Lowest 16.3%Highest
Trailsmapped miles 0.0 miLowest 6.6 miHighest
Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.0 miLowest 0.2 miHighest
Parks & preservesnamed on the map 0 0
Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 64.2Highest 0.9Lowest
Schools
School district Willow Lake School District 12-3Willow Lake School District 12-3
High school in town Willow Lake High School - 01None in town
Students per teacherat that high school 11.1 —
South Dakota average“±” Census margin of errorACS 2020–2024
Deciding?

Ask the people who live there

The numbers stop at the town line. Neighbors can tell you about the commute at 7am, the schools, the winters and the feel of the place.

Willow Lake neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Willow Lake’s Town Square.

Collins Township neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Collins Township’s Town Square.

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Bordering Willow Lake

Towns like Willow Lake

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2010 & 2020 censuses, LEHD commute flows; Zillow Home Value Index; NCES Common Core of Data; FBI crime reporting; CDC PLACES; FEMA National Risk Index; NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020; USGS PAD-US and OpenStreetMap. “±” is the Census margin of error; differences inside it are never called. Property tax is top-coded by the Census at $10,000+. There is no overall score: which town is better depends on what matters to you.

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