ZIP 05152 vs ZIP 05253

This side-by-side compares ZIP 05152 (Peru, VT) and ZIP 05253 (East Dorset, VT) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 05152 has a population of 448 at 4 people per square mile, while ZIP 05253 has 685 at 20 per square mile. That difference in population size and density alone reshapes how every other metric should be interpreted — a higher-income ZIP with 1,200 residents behaves very differently from one with 45,000.

On income and education, ZIP 05152 reports a median household income of $129,500 against $92,159 in ZIP 05253, with per-capita income of $76,081 vs $48,785. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 55.9% in 05152 and 72.7% in 05253. Poverty rate reads 1.8% vs 11.8%, and unemployment 0.3% vs 5.5% — these four fields alone drive most of the difference in the scorecard grades you will see for each ZIP.

Housing separates these two ZIPs further: median home value sits at $392,000 in 05152 versus $541,700 in 05253, with median rent of $1,271 and $1,330 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 79.9% vs 82.1%. When reading the comparison table below, focus on paired metrics rather than single winners — a ZIP with lower home values and lower income is not strictly "worse" if rent-to-income ratios and commute times land in the same zone. Every value is pulled from the exact same ACS table so the two columns are genuinely comparable.