ZIP 50642 vs ZIP 50638

This side-by-side compares ZIP 50642 (Holland, IA) and ZIP 50638 (Grundy Center, IA) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 50642 has a population of 581 at 7 people per square mile, while ZIP 50638 has 3,313 at 14 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 50642 reports a median household income of $108,750 against $85,223 in ZIP 50638, with per-capita income of $51,233 vs $41,853. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 18.1% in 50642 and 26.7% in 50638. Poverty rate reads 10.2% vs 9.1%, and unemployment 8.8% vs 1.2% — 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 $178,900 in 50642 versus $185,200 in 50638, with median rent of $1,087 and — per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 90.9% vs 81.9%. 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.