Graham, NC

The affordability dashboard for Graham, NC aggregates Census ACS 5-Year Estimates across 1 ZIP code covering 29,827 residents, then layers in county-level federal data to produce an overall grade of C- (52/100). The headline inputs are median household income of $62,774, median home value of $235,800, median rent of $1,041 per month, and 26.7% 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 $1,348 per month (studio $992, 1BR $1,230, 3BR $1,670, 4BR $1,972). Department of Labor data lists infant center-based childcare at $7,550 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. Unemployment currently reads 5.8% and poverty 12.6% — numbers worth keeping alongside the headline grade.