ZIP 99170 vs ZIP 99149

This side-by-side compares ZIP 99170 (Rosalia, WA) and ZIP 99149 (Malden, WA) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 99170 has a population of 1,072 at 2 people per square mile, while ZIP 99149 has 208 at 31 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 99170 reports a median household income of $58,750 against $26,250 in ZIP 99149, with per-capita income of $35,231 vs $18,424. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 17.8% in 99170 and 17.9% in 99149. Poverty rate reads 12.3% vs 24.0%, and unemployment 6.0% vs 28.6% — 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 $238,300 in 99170 versus $49,500 in 99149, with median rent of $825 and — per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 83.9% 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.