ZIP 22963 vs ZIP 22974

This side-by-side compares ZIP 22963 (Palmyra, VA) and ZIP 22974 (Troy, VA) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 22963 has a population of 15,401 at 49 people per square mile, while ZIP 22974 has 5,385 at 52 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 22963 reports a median household income of $104,259 against $112,344 in ZIP 22974, with per-capita income of $50,971 vs $35,499. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 45.0% in 22963 and 27.8% in 22974. Poverty rate reads 6.5% vs 4.8%, and unemployment 3.1% vs 1.1% — 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 $327,900 in 22963 versus $368,900 in 22974, with median rent of $1,702 and $1,093 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 93.8% vs 90.1%. 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.