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Place dossier plate
SheetIA-HARPERS-FERRY-IA · Harpers Ferry, IA 210 pop · income 6th pct
Instrument codes from this place’s ACS population and household income, BEA state COL, FBI safety, national income percentile, photo-finish peer city, home-value band, and matched Census-tract book - not a moving recommendation.
Income neighbourhood around Harpers Ferry
Lowest/highest poles plus peers nearest Harpers Ferry on median household income. Full ladder: /browse and /rankings.
median HH income
Woodville · lowest
29,833
Woodville · lowest
29,833 median HH income
42.5% of the leader · rank #1
Harpers Ferry · this city
37,813
Harpers Ferry · this city
37,813 median HH income
53.9% of the leader · rank #2
Byhalia · near
37,813
Byhalia · near
37,813 median HH income
53.9% of the leader · rank #3
Lake · near
37,813
Lake · near
37,813 median HH income
53.9% of the leader · rank #4
Ridgeland · near
37,813
Ridgeland · near
37,813 median HH income
53.9% of the leader · rank #5
Smithfield · near
37,827
Smithfield · near
37,827 median HH income
53.9% of the leader · rank #6
Cushing · highest
70,139
Cushing · highest
70,139 median HH income
100.0% of the leader · rank #7
What this shows Neighbourhood peers only - not a full nationwide city board. Open a near peer when the gap is small; open the poles when the spread is wide.
Compare beyond this state
Nationwide peers by population, income
Out-of-state nearest neighbors for Harpers Ferry on ACS population and median household income
. Link sets are deduped so each column is a distinct comparison path, not a forecast that peers share a labor market or climate.
Similar population
Nearest out-of-state cities by ACS population. This city: 210.
Harpers Ferry ranks in the 6th percentile for household income nationally, out of every US city with at least 1,000 residents. Source: Census ACS.
6th
percentile, household income
32nd
percentile, home value
11th
percentile, median rent
📝 How we sourced this
Population, income, and housing-cost figures come from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates (B-series tables). Crime data uses FBI UCR; climate uses NOAA Climate Normals; school counts come from NCES Common Core of Data; permits use the Census Building Permits Survey (BPS). See our methodology page for the full ETL pipeline and OMB / FIPS join keys.
Data Snapshot: Harpers Ferry, IA
Iowa's Harpers Ferry is a small town, with 210 residents per the latest Census Bureau ACS figures. Median household income here is $37,813 per year, in the lower quartile of U.S. cities for household income, with a poverty rate of 7.3%. Home values in Harpers Ferry run a median of $165,100, and the median resident age is 66.6 years. 18.6% of adults here have a bachelor's degree or higher; 44.7% of working-age residents are in the labor force.
Housing supply pressure shows in Census Building Permit Survey data: 7 residential units were authorized in 2024 (Growing), up 17% from five years earlier.
Living costs in Iowa run below the national norm: on BEA's 100-equals-national-average cost index, Iowa scores 87.8 (Well Below Average), per the 2024 Regional Price Parities release. A typical two-bedroom carries a HUD Fair Market Rent of $989 per month statewide. Monthly utility costs average around $212 across Iowa, per EIA 2023 residential energy estimates. Natural-hazard exposure scores 39.7 out of 100 on FEMA's National Risk Index (Very Low).
A decision-led reading path
Useful questions to ask of Harpers Ferry's data
How this reading path is ordered
This is not a composite city score. It is a city-specific route through the available public records, ordered for this profile so the page starts with questions the joined data can actually answer. The route here runs from housing and income to work and mobility to comparison shortlist to population change; another city can have a different sequence or fewer supported layers because the source joins are not uniform.
For Harpers Ferry, city-specific coverage includes local building permits, annual population history, commute-mode shares.
No matched row is reported here for within-city Census tract profiles, matched public-school count, FBI reported-crime rates; the page leaves those layers out instead of substituting a statewide or national value.
1. Housing and income
How far does income reach against housing in Harpers Ferry?
This is a citywide price-to-income reference, not a mortgage-affordability test; it does not include interest rates, taxes, insurance, household size, or an individual buyer's down payment. Housing value is high relative to the citywide income median. That flags a question for comparison, not a verdict: tenure, household composition, financing costs, and the age of the ACS estimate can all change what a resident actually pays.
The home-value-to-income reference is comparatively stretched: the ACS median home value is 4.4 times median household income. The ACS poverty estimate is 7.3%, which keeps the citywide median from describing every household.
What does the journey to work look like in Harpers Ferry?
Driving alone is the largest reported mode at 81.8%. A reliable mean commute time is not available for this row, so the mode shares carry the comparison.
Mode share answers how workers usually travel; it does not measure congestion, reliability, distance to a particular job, or the quality of transit service. No single mode completely explains the work trip here. The mix is more useful than a one-number commute grade, especially when comparing places where transit, walking, and remote work divide the non-driving share differently.
Which cities make useful reference points for Harpers Ferry?
Use the in-state set to hold state policy and broad price conditions more nearly constant. Use the nationwide size set to ask whether cities with a similar resident count produce different housing, income, or commute outcomes. The income set is a third lens, deliberately separate from population matching.
Within Iowa, the closest population matches are Paton (210 residents, $62,292 income); Rowan (209 residents, $57,500 income); Westgate (211 residents, $52,188 income). Outside the state, the closest population matches in this dataset are East Shore, CA (210 residents); Kit Carson, CO (210 residents); Woodville, GA (210 residents). A third, income-matched reference set of 6 out-of-state cities sits in the income neighbourhood chart near the Place Dossier plate. These are mechanical peer sets, not claims that the places share a labor market, climate, culture, or metro context.
Is Harpers Ferry growing, shrinking, or holding steady?
Census PEP estimates show the population grew by +13 residents from 2020 to 2025, a +5.0% change. Separately, Census BPS recorded 7 housing units authorized in 2024. PEP and ACS are different Census series, so the trend is kept separate from the headline ACS population.
Recent estimates point upward. Growth can increase housing demand and service needs, but the permit record must move in the same direction before calling it a supply response; the two series measure different things.
Lowest-decile income · poverty 7.3% (Below-median poverty)
Cost of Living Index (state)
87.8 (US=100)
Very affordable · BEA RPP 2024, Iowa average
D
City profile score · Harpers Ferry, IA
43/100
4 published dimensions · ACS/FBI 2023
Comparative score against U.S. cities with population of 1,000 or more on Census ACS medians
(income, poverty, bachelor's share, cost of living) and FBI UCR violent-crime rates when
published. Higher means a stronger standing on those published figures, not a livability
rating, not a recommendation to move, buy, or pick a "best" city. Missing inputs drop out
and redistribute weight.
How it is calculated.
Cost of living A+
87.8 index
BEA state Regional Price Parities index (100 ≈ national average); lower is stronger on this axis. Same value for every city in the state.
Poverty rate C-
7.3%
Share of residents below the poverty line; lower scores better on this axis.
Bachelor's+ share F
18.6%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher; ACS.
Household income F
$37,813
Median household income vs U.S. cities (pop ≥1,000); ACS.
Violent crime N/A
N/A
No FBI UCR violent-crime rate for this place (coverage is incomplete).
Harpers Ferry profile (scored ACS/FBI dimensions)Read the chart values
Cost of living: 94/100 (A+) · 87.8 index
Poverty rate: 51/100 (C-) · 7.3%
Bachelor's+ share: 30/100 (F) · 18.6%
Household income: 4/100 (F) · $37,813
How does Harpers Ferry compare to other US cities?
Harpers Ferry measured against every US city with 1,000+ residents, computed live from the same Census and FBI data shown throughout this page.
Household income6% higher than other cities
Home value32% pricier than other cities
Median rent11% pricier than other cities
"Safer than" reflects total crime rate from FBI UCR; the others use Census ACS estimates.
How we calculate these percentiles & ranks
Each percentile compares Harpers Ferry against every qualifying US city; each in-state rank narrows that to Iowa only. Full formula and direction notes: methodology.
Iowa-relative analysis
Median Gross Rent places Harpers Ferry near the bottom of Iowa's cities
Among the 858 Iowa cities PlainCities tracks with reported median gross rent data, Harpers Ferry ranks #1 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide percentiles above: it compares Harpers Ferry only against its own state's cities, not the full US field.
Median Household Income
#833 of 845
1st percentile in Iowa
Median Gross Rent
#1 of 858
0th percentile in Iowa
Median Home Value
#210 of 849
75th percentile in Iowa
Poverty Rate
#352 of 858
58th percentile in Iowa
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
#402 of 858
52nd percentile in Iowa
How in-state ranks are ordered
Ranked by raw value (highest first); a higher rank is not automatically "better" for every measure, see each metric's own context above. This is a comparison within Iowa only, not a livability score. See the methodology for the source and calculation.
Gauge source note
6th percentile nationally for median household income. Source: Census ACS 2023 / FBI UCR 2023.
How Harpers Ferry's home value compares nationally
Median home value vs. every US city (population 1,000+)
$165,100Among the most affordablemore affordable than 68% of 15,600 US cities
Show national distribution
Each bar is a $25K-wide band; taller bars hold more US cities. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2023
Harpers Ferry's home-value-to-income ratio: 4.4×
ACS median home value divided by median household income.
Band
moderate
3.0–5.0×
National rank
#11,690 of 15,516
More affordable than 25% of tracked cities (pop. 1,000+)
Size class
#8,992 of 11,323
Micro cities (under 10,000)
At 4.4×, Harpers Ferry sits in the moderate band:
national rank #11,690 of 15,516 and #8,992 of 11,323micro cities (under 10,000).
Income and home value move in the same broad scale; check same-state peers before treating the multiple as an advantage or a warning.
How this ratio is calculated
Ratio = Census ACS 2023 median home value ÷ median household income for cities with both fields and population ≥ 1,000.
Rank 1 = lowest ratio (most compact). Bands match the fleet affordability thresholds used on guides (<3.0 / 3.0–5.0 / >5.0).
This is not a mortgage payment estimate and does not include rates, taxes, insurance, or down payment.
Income distribution context
$37,813Harpers Ferry, IA median household income (Census ACS)
Show U.S. national quintile / Lorenz context Harpers Ferry, IA median household income (Census ACS 5-year) with U.S. national quintile shares for context. Diagonal = equality; the curve is national, not computed for Harpers Ferry, IA.
Key socioeconomic indicators
Bachelor's degree or higher (adults 25+)18.6%
Census ACS S1501, educational attainment
Poverty rate (households below FPL)7.3%
Census ACS S1701, poverty status
Labor force participation (adults 16+)44.7%
Census ACS S2301, share of working-age residents in the labor force
Population
210
Median Income
$37,813
Median Home Value
$165,100
Median Age
66.6
Poverty Rate
7.3%
Labor force participation
44.7%
Bachelor's Degree+
18.6%
Population Change
PEP vintage
Annual U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program (PEP) estimates, 2020–2025
Harpers Ferry's Census PEP population estimates, 2020–2025.Read the chart as text
Period
Population
2020
261 residents
2021
261 residents
2022
265 residents
2023
271 residents
2024
273 residents
2025
274 residents
Housing Supply
BPS source
Census Bureau Building Permits Survey (BPS) - annual residential permits authorized
🏗️ Growing
Total Permits (2024)
7
housing units authorized
Single-Family
7
detached homes
Multifamily
0
apartments & condos
Supply Intensity
33.3
permits per 1,000 residents
5-Year Permit Trend (2019–2024)
Year
Total
Single-Family
Multifamily
Est. Value
2019
6
6
0
$1.3M
2020
6
4
2
$1.4M
2021
6
6
0
$1.7M
2022
9
9
0
$2.0M
2023
5
5
0
$1.7M
2024
7
7
0
$2.2M
Permit volume increased 17% from 2019 to 2024.
Commute Patterns
Commute source
How workers travel to work, Census ACS 2023
Drive Alone
81.8%
Carpool
1.1%
Public Transit
0.0%
Walk
4.5%
Work from Home
11.4%
Other
1.2%
Based on 88 workers 16 and over.
Monthly Utility Costs
Iowa statewide monthly utility average (EIA 2023): $212
EIA 2023 residential energy data puts average monthly utilities across Iowa at $212 (electricity about $95 , water and sewer about $42 ).
These are Iowa statewide averages, not a meter reading for Harpers Ferry. Actual bills vary by home size, usage, and local rates. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023.
Living Costs & Risk
Iowa's BEA cost-of-living index is 87.8 (Well Below Average; US average = 100, RPP 2024). HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in the county around Harpers Ferry is $989/mo. FEMA's National Risk Index, averaged to Iowa statewide on PlainCities, rates natural-hazard exposure at 39.7 / 100 (Very Low).
Cost/risk geography note
Cost of living is a Iowa statewide BEA average; rent is a county-level HUD Fair Market Rent for the county Harpers Ferry sits in; the FEMA hazard score shown here is a statewide average of county NRI inputs, not a parcel-level reading.
How Harpers Ferry compares to similar-size Iowa cities
Same-state peer method
Closest same-state population matches, not geographic neighbors. Population + median household income come from Census Bureau ACS 5-year B01001 and B19013.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year 2023, Census BPS 2024, Census ACS B08301/B08136, U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023, BEA Regional Price Parities 2024, HUD Fair Market Rents 2026, FEMA National Risk Index.