ZIP 48835 vs ZIP 48873

This side-by-side compares ZIP 48835 (Fowler, MI) and ZIP 48873 (Pewamo, MI) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 48835 has a population of 2,680 at 19 people per square mile, while ZIP 48873 has 1,615 at 19 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 48835 reports a median household income of $81,964 against $86,250 in ZIP 48873, with per-capita income of $40,938 vs $35,276. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 27.8% in 48835 and 26.2% in 48873. Poverty rate reads 6.1% vs 4.5%, and unemployment 1.8% vs 1.0% — 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 $214,400 in 48835 versus $195,300 in 48873, with median rent of $588 and $931 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 92.8% vs 90.7%. 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.