ZIP 12823 vs ZIP 12865

This side-by-side compares ZIP 12823 (Cossayuna, NY) and ZIP 12865 (Salem, NY) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 12823 has a population of 238 at 22 people per square mile, while ZIP 12865 has 3,663 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 12823 reports a median household income of $118,783 against $71,983 in ZIP 12865, with per-capita income of $48,211 vs $37,648. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 76.5% in 12823 and 27.5% in 12865. Poverty rate reads 0.0% vs 17.2%, and unemployment 0.0% vs 9.9% — 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 $194,800 in 12823 versus $192,900 in 12865, with median rent of — and $955 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 94.6% vs 88.6%. 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.