ZIP 49448 vs ZIP 49415

This side-by-side compares ZIP 49448 (Nunica, MI) and ZIP 49415 (Fruitport, MI) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 49448 has a population of 3,410 at 40 people per square mile, while ZIP 49415 has 6,480 at 85 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 49448 reports a median household income of $86,458 against $81,908 in ZIP 49415, with per-capita income of $40,326 vs $44,119. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 39.3% in 49448 and 21.0% in 49415. Poverty rate reads 2.8% vs 6.7%, and unemployment 2.0% vs 2.2% — 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 $301,300 in 49448 versus $246,300 in 49415, with median rent of $778 and $1,109 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 88.5% vs 94.1%. 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.