Newport, MN

The affordability dashboard for Newport, MN aggregates Census ACS 5-Year Estimates across 1 ZIP code covering 3,418 residents, then layers in county-level federal data to produce an overall grade of D (42/100). The headline inputs are median household income of $71,979, median home value of $378,100, median rent of $1,122 per month, and 27.4% 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 $1,709 per month (studio $1,242, 1BR $1,405, 3BR $2,262, 4BR $2,531). Department of Labor data lists infant center-based childcare at $20,280 per year, consuming 28% 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 4.3% and poverty 9.4% — numbers worth keeping alongside the headline grade.