Wailuku, HI

The affordability dashboard for Wailuku, HI aggregates Census ACS 5-Year Estimates across 1 ZIP code covering 29,549 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 $107,668, median home value of $832,400, median rent of $1,816 per month, and 29.6% 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 $2,624 per month (studio $1,896, 1BR $2,000, 3BR $3,398, 4BR $4,236). Department of Labor data lists infant center-based childcare at $15,000 per year, consuming 14% 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 Wailuku, HI include income. Pressure points are housing. Unemployment currently reads 3.8% and poverty 6.7% — numbers worth keeping alongside the headline grade.