ZIP 30523 vs ZIP 30552

This side-by-side compares ZIP 30523 (Clarkesville, GA) and ZIP 30552 (Lakemont, GA) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 30523 has a population of 12,904 at 29 people per square mile, while ZIP 30552 has 1,697 at 12 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 30523 reports a median household income of $80,185 against $66,316 in ZIP 30552, with per-capita income of $40,610 vs $60,586. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 35.1% in 30523 and 31.3% in 30552. Poverty rate reads 8.1% vs 10.4%, and unemployment 2.1% vs 2.1% — 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 $293,900 in 30523 versus $354,700 in 30552, with median rent of $1,121 and $1,067 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 81.8% vs 89.0%. 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.