ZIP 27972 vs ZIP 27982

This side-by-side compares ZIP 27972 (Salvo, NC) and ZIP 27982 (Waves, NC) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 27972 has a population of 244 at 66 people per square mile, while ZIP 27982 has 82 at 100 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 27972 reports a median household income of — against — in ZIP 27982, with per-capita income of $60,244 vs $62,036. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 36.9% in 27972 and 0.0% in 27982. Poverty rate reads 0.0% vs 0.0%, and unemployment 0.0% vs — — 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 — in 27972 versus — in 27982, with median rent of — and — per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 69.4% 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.