ZIP 48450 vs ZIP 48422

This side-by-side compares ZIP 48450 (Lexington, MI) and ZIP 48422 (Croswell, MI) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 48450 has a population of 4,780 at 83 people per square mile, while ZIP 48422 has 6,400 at 26 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 48450 reports a median household income of $52,962 against $57,899 in ZIP 48422, with per-capita income of $41,042 vs $32,000. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 23.2% in 48450 and 14.6% in 48422. Poverty rate reads 15.6% vs 13.9%, and unemployment 3.3% vs 7.8% — 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 $198,100 in 48450 versus $171,300 in 48422, with median rent of $847 and $691 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 85.8% vs 86.6%. 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.