Fosters, AL

The affordability dashboard for Fosters, AL aggregates Census ACS 5-Year Estimates across 1 ZIP code covering 1,749 residents, then layers in county-level federal data to produce an overall grade of D (49/100). The headline inputs are median household income of $59,464, median home value of $226,000, median rent of — per month, and 12.3% 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 $1,169 per month (studio $966, 1BR $972, 3BR $1,490, 4BR $1,548). Department of Labor data lists infant center-based childcare at $7,094 per year, consuming 12% 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 education. Unemployment currently reads 8.5% and poverty 7.4% — numbers worth keeping alongside the headline grade.