ZIP 48234 vs ZIP 48212

This side-by-side compares ZIP 48234 (Detroit, MI) and ZIP 48212 (Hamtramck, MI) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 48234 has a population of 36,140 at 1,781 people per square mile, while ZIP 48212 has 39,038 at 2,814 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 48234 reports a median household income of $35,322 against $38,186 in ZIP 48212, with per-capita income of $20,113 vs $15,400. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 9.8% in 48234 and 16.1% in 48212. Poverty rate reads 37.4% vs 39.0%, and unemployment 14.0% vs 12.0% — 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 $61,200 in 48234 versus $109,200 in 48212, with median rent of $1,015 and $999 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 53.0% vs 61.7%. 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.