Melba, ID

The affordability dashboard for Melba, ID aggregates Census ACS 5-Year Estimates across 1 ZIP code covering 3,438 residents, then layers in county-level federal data to produce an overall grade of C- (51/100). The headline inputs are median household income of $84,730, median home value of $425,700, median rent of $1,107 per month, and 21.9% 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 $1,655 per month (studio $1,170, 1BR $1,381, 3BR $2,318, 4BR $2,772). Department of Labor data lists infant center-based childcare at $8,653 per year, consuming 10% 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 education, housing, commute. Unemployment currently reads 1.3% and poverty 8.5% — numbers worth keeping alongside the headline grade.