Cincinnati, OH

The affordability dashboard for Cincinnati, OH aggregates Census ACS 5-Year Estimates across 45 ZIP codes covering 795,220 residents, then layers in county-level federal data to produce an overall grade of C+ (61/100). The headline inputs are median household income of $75,798, median home value of $261,126, median rent of $1,135 per month, and 41.0% of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher. These four metrics alone explain most of the variance between city dashboards.

Cross-agency feeds widen the picture beyond Census demographics. HUD publishes a Fair Market Rent for a 2-bedroom in this county at $1,353 per month (studio $958, 1BR $1,051, 3BR $1,785, 4BR $1,976). Department of Labor data lists infant center-based childcare at $15,340 per year, consuming 20% of the local median household income.

Reading the overall grade requires reading all seven dimensions together. The score weights Income 20%, Safety 20%, Housing 15%, Rent 15%, Education 10%, Commute 10%, and Childcare 10%, with each sub-score benchmarked against national percentiles rather than state averages — so the grade is genuinely comparable across any city in the country. Strengths visible in the raw data for Cincinnati, OH include rent. Pressure points are childcare. Unemployment currently reads 5.2% and poverty 15.2% — numbers worth keeping alongside the headline grade.