ZIP 49289 vs ZIP 49279

This side-by-side compares ZIP 49289 (Weston, MI) and ZIP 49279 (Sand Creek, MI) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 49289 has a population of 167 at 90 people per square mile, while ZIP 49279 has 797 at 12 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 49289 reports a median household income of — against $71,364 in ZIP 49279, with per-capita income of $24,394 vs $33,485. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 0.0% in 49289 and 7.1% in 49279. Poverty rate reads 25.6% vs 15.3%, and unemployment 0.0% vs 1.7% — 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 49289 versus $162,800 in 49279, with median rent of — and $1,094 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 96.2% vs 95.3%. 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.