Hobson, MT

The affordability dashboard for Hobson, MT aggregates Census ACS 5-Year Estimates across 1 ZIP code covering 525 residents, then layers in county-level federal data to produce an overall grade of D (45/100). The headline inputs are median household income of $54,539, median home value of $223,600, median rent of $484 per month, and 28.0% 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 $1,160 per month (studio $869, 1BR $905, 3BR $1,583, 4BR $1,875). Department of Labor data lists infant center-based childcare at $10,853 per year, consuming 20% 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, childcare. Unemployment currently reads 0.0% and poverty 6.9% - numbers worth keeping alongside the headline grade.