ZIP 18235 vs ZIP 18071

This side-by-side compares ZIP 18235 (Lehighton, PA) and ZIP 18071 (Palmerton, PA) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 18235 has a population of 19,353 at 94 people per square mile, while ZIP 18071 has 10,578 at 134 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 18235 reports a median household income of $72,571 against $70,217 in ZIP 18071, with per-capita income of $39,723 vs $40,115. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 19.8% in 18235 and 16.9% in 18071. Poverty rate reads 9.6% vs 11.5%, and unemployment 5.6% vs 3.9% — 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 $233,600 in 18235 versus $206,900 in 18071, with median rent of $1,055 and $956 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 77.0% vs 67.5%. 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.