ZIP 26845 vs ZIP 26731

This side-by-side compares ZIP 26845 (Old Fields, WV) and ZIP 26731 (Lahmansville, WV) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 26845 has a population of 898 at 10 people per square mile, while ZIP 26731 has 382 at 9 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 26845 reports a median household income of $64,583 against — in ZIP 26731, with per-capita income of $25,583 vs $30,315. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 39.2% in 26845 and 14.9% in 26731. Poverty rate reads 21.8% vs 0.0%, and unemployment 5.6% 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 $134,200 in 26845 versus $318,900 in 26731, with median rent of $1,526 and — per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 83.1% vs 57.0%. 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.