ZIP 24712 vs ZIP 25971

This side-by-side compares ZIP 24712 (Athens, WV) and ZIP 25971 (Lerona, WV) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 24712 has a population of 2,063 at 90 people per square mile, while ZIP 25971 has 1,130 at 22 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 24712 reports a median household income of $80,625 against $74,439 in ZIP 25971, with per-capita income of $21,037 vs $35,986. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 37.5% in 24712 and 22.5% in 25971. Poverty rate reads 10.6% vs 13.4%, and unemployment 2.9% vs 0.0% — 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 $213,800 in 24712 versus $150,000 in 25971, with median rent of $975 and — per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 87.5% vs 100.0%. 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.