Lakehead, CA

The affordability dashboard for Lakehead, CA aggregates Census ACS 5-Year Estimates across 1 ZIP code covering 1,139 residents, then layers in county-level federal data to produce an overall grade of D (44/100). The headline inputs are median household income of $69,688, median home value of $360,000, median rent of $2,007 per month, and 25.9% 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 $1,590 per month (studio $1,172, 1BR $1,212, 3BR $2,211, 4BR $2,667). Department of Labor data lists infant center-based childcare at $12,910 per year, consuming 19% 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 16.3% and poverty 20.4% - numbers worth keeping alongside the headline grade.