Dover, DE

The affordability dashboard for Dover, DE aggregates Census ACS 5-Year Estimates across 2 ZIP codes covering 69,187 residents, then layers in county-level federal data to produce an overall grade of C- (50/100). The headline inputs are median household income of $66,645, median home value of $290,957, median rent of $1,384 per month, and 27.1% 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 $1,470 per month (studio $1,158, 1BR $1,165, 3BR $2,044, 4BR $2,285). Department of Labor data lists infant center-based childcare at $9,471 per year, consuming 14% 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. Pressure points are housing. Unemployment currently reads 6.6% and poverty 14.2% — numbers worth keeping alongside the headline grade.