Decatur, MS

The affordability dashboard for Decatur, MS aggregates Census ACS 5-Year Estimates across 1 ZIP code covering 4,190 residents, then layers in county-level federal data to produce an overall grade of C+ (64/100). The headline inputs are median household income of $57,667, median home value of $156,500, median rent of $879 per month, and 30.5% 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 $842 per month (studio $638, 1BR $642, 3BR $1,012, 4BR $1,115). Department of Labor data lists infant center-based childcare at $6,062 per year, consuming 11% 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 Decatur, MS include housing, rent. Unemployment currently reads 5.5% and poverty 12.9% — numbers worth keeping alongside the headline grade.