Ladysmith, Wisconsin.
Typical home $187,870 (+9.8% in a year).
to buy the typical home at today's mortgage rate — +$590 (+149%) since Jan 2020.
- 1 year
- Up $16,712 +10%
- $171,158$187,870 since Sep 2025
- 5 years
- Up $49,462 +36%
- $138,408$187,870 since Sep 2021
Monthly payment to buy the typical home
Home value × that month's 30-year mortgage rate, 20% down, principal and interest. This is the line households feel: prices and rates compound each other.
- Ladysmith$986
- Wisconsin$1,770
- United States$1,922
At the last five years' pace, a typical home here doubles in price every 11 years.
Typical home values in Ladysmith, WI rose 9.8% over the past year — faster than the nation's +1.2%.
Living in Ladysmith, Rusk County, Wisconsin
Ladysmith is a city of 3,216 people in Rusk County. 53% of its homes are lived in by their owners and 47% are rented. Unemployment in Rusk County was 4.2% in August 2026, and the county had 4.4% fewer jobs in 2025 than the year before. The most residents work in manufacturing, then schools and health care.
Written by AI Claude Sonnet 5.5 wrote this on 23 October 2026 from the figures here, a list of nearby places and what it knows. It can be wrong or out of date.
What it’s like
The place. Ladysmith is a small city in northern Wisconsin and the largest community in Rusk County. Its residents are older than in most American places, and more of them own their homes than rent. Winters are long and cold, with a lot of snow, while summers are warm and mild enough for a good stretch outdoors.
Work. Many people in Ladysmith work in manufacturing, in schools, hospitals and social care, or in shops, restaurants and hotels. Among the largest workplaces in town are Weather Shield, which makes windows, Walmart, and Henry Repeating Arms. Getting to work is quick for most residents, and few work from home.
Things to do. In or beside town, the Rusk County Historical Society Museum is a place to learn about local history. A longer drive away, Brunet Island State Park is a protected area along the Chippewa River, and Christie Mountain is a ski area for the snowy months. The Flambeau River is also a longer drive away, and is one of the better-known rivers nearby.
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- 1,694households
- 20%of adults have a degree
- 19%below the poverty line
- 18 mintypical commute
- 5%work from home
What residents work in
Employed residents by industry, from the Census survey. Rusk County had 4,396 jobs in 2025, 4.4% fewer than the year before (Bureau of Labor Statistics).
Weather through the year
Coldest in January, with highs near 25° and lows near 2°; warmest in July, with highs near 78° and lows near 53°. About 52 inches of snow and 36 inches of rain and melted snow a year.
Average daily high and low, 1991–2020, at the Ladysmith 3W weather station, a mile away (NOAA).
Largest workplaces in Ladysmith
- Weather Shield Mfg Inc. --Ladysmith Plant 05Windows, wood and covered wood, manufacturing276
- WalmartWarehouse clubs and supercenters215
- Henry Repeating Arms - LadysmithFirearms, small, manufacturing178
- Senior ManagementConvalescent homes or convalescent hospitals114
- Ladysmith School DistrictSchool district108FTE
- Marshfield Medical Center-ladysmithCritical access hospital108FTE
- Dunn Paper - LadysmithPaper stock for conversion into paper products manufacturing84
Staff on average in 2025, as each workplace reported it to OSHA with its injury records: 6 workplaces with 20 or more staff, 981 people in all. School districts come from the Common Core of Data (NCES, 2023–24) and hospitals from their Medicare cost reports (CMS, 2023); FTE marks full-time equivalent staff. Not listed: many offices and banks, which need not report to OSHA; military bases, whose staff OPM withholds; and, in about half the states, city and county governments.
Natural hazards
- Cold wavesRelatively moderate
FEMA’s National Risk Index (December 2025) rates the risk each natural hazard poses to the people, buildings and farms across Rusk County, against the rest of the country; all of them together, very low. It is meant for planning, not a substitute for a local risk assessment or a flood map: FEMA’s index.
From the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2020 census and its American Community Survey (2020–2024 five-year estimates), and the Bureau of Labor Statistics. A survey, so each figure has a margin of error, and figures it is not sure of are left out. More on Rusk County.
Ladysmith home values
Zillow measures a city over its municipal boundary. Against the state and national figures, mid-tier homes, smoothed and seasonally adjusted.
- Ladysmith$187,870
- Wisconsin$337,196
- United States$366,157
Levy by levy, and a check of one home’s own bill, the site covers Ohio’s property tax.
Sellers are cutting prices on about 1 in 5 Ladysmith listings — the market is roughly in balance.
When this market ran hot
Each cell is that month's year-on-year home-value growth. Read left to right, top row is the latest year — the 2021–22 band is the boom.
Market heat, inside the city limits
Share of listings with a price cut
The early-warning dial: sellers cut when buyers stop reaching. Rising cuts cool a market months before prices notice.
- Ladysmith20.27%
- United States26.90%
Homes for sale
Active for-sale inventory. More supply hands power to buyers.
- Ladysmith45
New listings per month
Sellers arriving at the market.
- Ladysmith11
Zip codes with a Ladysmith address
A different geography, not a breakdown. The figure above covers the municipality; these zips cover everywhere the Post Office calls Ladysmith — often including townships beyond the city limits. Both come straight from Zillow, and they are not expected to average out.
Zip codes in Ladysmith
| Zip activate to sort by Zip | Place activate to sort by Place | Population sorted descending, activate to sort ascending | Rent activate to sort by Rent | Home value activate to sort by Home value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 54848 | Ladysmith | 5,832 | — | $187,201 |
| 54563 | Tony | 811 | — | $255,315 |