ZIP 50327 vs ZIP 50009

This side-by-side compares ZIP 50327 (Pleasant Hill, IA) and ZIP 50009 (Altoona, IA) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 50327 has a population of 10,467 at 217 people per square mile, while ZIP 50009 has 16,136 at 248 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 50327 reports a median household income of $98,333 against $88,447 in ZIP 50009, with per-capita income of $44,905 vs $44,085. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 35.2% in 50327 and 34.4% in 50009. Poverty rate reads 7.8% vs 8.4%, and unemployment 9.2% vs 7.1% — 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 $314,400 in 50327 versus $278,300 in 50009, with median rent of $1,226 and $1,232 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 81.0% vs 70.5%. 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.