ZIP 22827 vs ZIP 22812

This side-by-side compares ZIP 22827 (Elkton, VA) and ZIP 22812 (Bridgewater, VA) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 22827 has a population of 10,388 at 29 people per square mile, while ZIP 22812 has 8,927 at 80 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 22827 reports a median household income of $70,519 against $85,941 in ZIP 22812, with per-capita income of $36,487 vs $38,067. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 14.2% in 22827 and 38.2% in 22812. Poverty rate reads 7.5% vs 4.9%, and unemployment 2.5% vs 2.8% — 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 $252,500 in 22827 versus $366,900 in 22812, with median rent of $861 and $1,258 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 76.3% vs 71.0%. 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.