ZIP 61517 vs ZIP 61529

This side-by-side compares ZIP 61517 (Brimfield, IL) and ZIP 61529 (Elmwood, IL) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 61517 has a population of 3,259 at 18 people per square mile, while ZIP 61529 has 2,880 at 17 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 61517 reports a median household income of $99,886 against $91,661 in ZIP 61529, with per-capita income of $43,573 vs $43,108. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 42.8% in 61517 and 37.7% in 61529. Poverty rate reads 5.6% vs 8.6%, and unemployment 5.8% vs 0.8% — 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 $275,000 in 61517 versus $164,800 in 61529, with median rent of $957 and $753 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 89.1% vs 81.3%. 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.