Olive Branch, MS

The affordability dashboard for Olive Branch, MS aggregates Census ACS 5-Year Estimates across 1 ZIP code covering 45,956 residents, then layers in county-level federal data to produce an overall grade of B (74/100). The headline inputs are median household income of $103,092, median home value of $309,400, median rent of $1,829 per month, and 32.5% 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 $1,274 per month (studio $1,060, 1BR $1,154, 3BR $1,683, 4BR $1,959). Department of Labor data lists infant center-based childcare at $7,564 per year, consuming 7% 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. Strengths visible in the raw data for Olive Branch, MS include income, rent, childcare. Unemployment currently reads 2.5% and poverty 4.8% — numbers worth keeping alongside the headline grade.