ZIP 49074 vs ZIP 49004

This side-by-side compares ZIP 49074 (Nazareth, MI) and ZIP 49004 (Kalamazoo, MI) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 49074 has a population of 149 at 811 people per square mile, while ZIP 49004 has 15,645 at 287 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 49074 reports a median household income of $33,750 against $73,453 in ZIP 49004, with per-capita income of $15,743 vs $37,744. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 23.2% in 49074 and 34.7% in 49004. Poverty rate reads 53.1% vs 8.8%, and unemployment 0.0% vs 8.8% — 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 — in 49074 versus $192,300 in 49004, with median rent of $425 and $1,141 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 0.0% vs 74.5%. 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.