Tucson, AZ

The affordability dashboard for Tucson, AZ aggregates Census ACS 5-Year Estimates across 32 ZIP codes covering 880,383 residents, then layers in county-level federal data to produce an overall grade of C- (52/100). The headline inputs are median household income of $69,962, median home value of $313,983, median rent of $1,304 per month, and 35.1% 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 $1,402 per month (studio $967, 1BR $1,081, 3BR $1,950, 4BR $2,245). Department of Labor data lists infant center-based childcare at $13,000 per year, consuming 19% 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 5.5% and poverty 15.4% — numbers worth keeping alongside the headline grade.