ZIP 12157 vs ZIP 12092

This side-by-side compares ZIP 12157 (Schoharie, NY) and ZIP 12092 (Howes Cave, NY) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 12157 has a population of 4,061 at 36 people per square mile, while ZIP 12092 has 1,304 at 34 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 12157 reports a median household income of $75,997 against $58,615 in ZIP 12092, with per-capita income of $38,882 vs $37,333. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 28.2% in 12157 and 28.7% in 12092. Poverty rate reads 10.7% vs 25.7%, and unemployment 5.6% vs 4.5% — 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 $223,400 in 12157 versus $217,600 in 12092, with median rent of $887 and $1,039 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 84.0% vs 64.9%. 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.