Gaines, PA

The affordability dashboard for Gaines, PA aggregates Census ACS 5-Year Estimates across 1 ZIP code covering 475 residents, then layers in county-level federal data to produce an overall grade of D (46/100). The headline inputs are median household income of $52,969, median home value of $189,100, median rent of $967 per month, and 14.1% 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 $1,051 per month (studio $725, 1BR $826, 3BR $1,362, 4BR $1,405).

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 1.5% and poverty 16.4% — numbers worth keeping alongside the headline grade.