ZIP 35172 vs ZIP 35097

This side-by-side compares ZIP 35172 (Trafford, AL) and ZIP 35097 (Locust Fork, AL) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 35172 has a population of 2,986 at 40 people per square mile, while ZIP 35097 has 1,748 at 86 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 35172 reports a median household income of $39,844 against $58,056 in ZIP 35097, with per-capita income of $28,057 vs $29,739. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 6.4% in 35172 and 12.0% in 35097. Poverty rate reads 23.0% vs 14.5%, and unemployment 2.9% vs 3.4% — 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 $126,300 in 35172 versus $150,500 in 35097, with median rent of $823 and $1,121 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 82.2% vs 90.1%. 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.