Marion, MS

The affordability dashboard for Marion, MS aggregates Census ACS 5-Year Estimates across 1 ZIP code covering 1,287 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 $45,298, median home value of $187,300, median rent of $1,074 per month, and 24.5% 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 $906 per month (studio $781, 1BR $812, 3BR $1,204, 4BR $1,265). Department of Labor data lists infant center-based childcare at $5,965 per year, consuming 13% 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 income, education, housing. Unemployment currently reads 7.8% and poverty 23.5% — numbers worth keeping alongside the headline grade.