Sprague, NE

The affordability dashboard for Sprague, NE aggregates Census ACS 5-Year Estimates across 1 ZIP code covering 142 residents, then layers in county-level federal data to produce an overall grade of B (70/100). The headline inputs are median household income of $81,250, median home value of $197,300, median rent of $1,607 per month, and 32.4% 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 $1,141 per month (studio $855, 1BR $926, 3BR $1,587, 4BR $1,712). Department of Labor data lists infant center-based childcare at $12,675 per year, consuming 16% 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 Sprague, NE include housing, rent. Unemployment currently reads 9.1% and poverty 19.3% — numbers worth keeping alongside the headline grade.