ZIP 52354 vs ZIP 52315

This side-by-side compares ZIP 52354 (Watkins, IA) and ZIP 52315 (Newhall, IA) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 52354 has a population of 379 at 5 people per square mile, while ZIP 52315 has 1,222 at 16 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 52354 reports a median household income of $112,969 against $77,656 in ZIP 52315, with per-capita income of $32,947 vs $39,814. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 19.0% in 52354 and 17.4% in 52315. Poverty rate reads 3.8% vs 9.6%, and unemployment 0.0% vs 2.1% — 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 $165,800 in 52354 versus $196,100 in 52315, with median rent of — and $642 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 95.0% vs 88.0%. 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.