ZIP 52571 vs ZIP 52531

This side-by-side compares ZIP 52571 (Moravia, IA) and ZIP 52531 (Albia, IA) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 52571 has a population of 1,407 at 6 people per square mile, while ZIP 52531 has 5,976 at 11 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 52571 reports a median household income of $81,953 against $73,896 in ZIP 52531, with per-capita income of $45,950 vs $35,685. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 30.2% in 52571 and 23.2% in 52531. Poverty rate reads 8.5% vs 9.5%, and unemployment 5.8% vs 2.9% — 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 $197,800 in 52571 versus $162,100 in 52531, with median rent of $814 and $773 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 83.2% vs 80.7%. 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.