ZIP 27870 vs ZIP 27832

This side-by-side compares ZIP 27870 (Roanoke Rapids, NC) and ZIP 27832 (Gaston, NC) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 27870 has a population of 27,236 at 155 people per square mile, while ZIP 27832 has 2,847 at 36 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 27870 reports a median household income of $49,502 against $52,194 in ZIP 27832, with per-capita income of $28,709 vs $36,423. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 18.6% in 27870 and 11.6% in 27832. Poverty rate reads 20.2% vs 26.0%, and unemployment 9.3% vs 6.6% — 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 $124,300 in 27870 versus $113,600 in 27832, with median rent of $873 and $821 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 58.4% vs 69.9%. 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.