ZIP 52551 vs ZIP 52588

This side-by-side compares ZIP 52551 (Douds, IA) and ZIP 52588 (Selma, IA) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 52551 has a population of 688 at 5 people per square mile, while ZIP 52588 has 134 at 5 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 52551 reports a median household income of $52,875 against $13,657 in ZIP 52588, with per-capita income of $25,858 vs $8,099. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 19.4% in 52551 and 27.5% in 52588. Poverty rate reads 16.1% vs 87.9%, and unemployment 3.5% vs 0.0% — 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 $97,000 in 52551 versus — in 52588, with median rent of — and — per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 76.8% vs 100.0%. 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.