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Place dossier plate
SheetIA-MILFORD-IA · Milford, IA 3,315 pop · income 36th 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 Milford
Lowest/highest poles plus peers nearest Milford on median household income. Full ladder: /browse and /rankings.
median HH income
Fordyce · lowest
43,056
Fordyce · lowest
43,056 median HH income
20.4% of the leader · rank #1
Adamsville · near
60,564
Adamsville · near
60,564 median HH income
28.6% of the leader · rank #2
Yadkin College · near
60,568
Yadkin College · near
60,568 median HH income
28.6% of the leader · rank #3
Milford · this city
60,571
Milford · this city
60,571 median HH income
28.6% of the leader · rank #4
Homestead Mea… · near
60,571
Homestead Mea… · near
60,571 median HH income
28.6% of the leader · rank #5
Saraland · near
60,577
Saraland · near
60,577 median HH income
28.6% of the leader · rank #6
West Lake Hil… · highest
211,471
West Lake Hil… · highest
211,471 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 Milford 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: 3,315.
Nationally, Milford sits in the 36th percentile for household income among US cities with a population of 1,000 or more. Source: Census ACS.
36th
percentile, household income
46th
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: Milford, IA
Census ACS 2023 estimates count 3,315 residents in Milford, a small town within Iowa. Milford households earn a median of $60,571 annually, below the median for U.S. cities on this measure, with a poverty rate of 2.7%. Milford's housing stock carries a median value of $211,000, and the median resident age is 45.8 years. 24.1% of adults here have a bachelor's degree or higher; 68.4% of working-age residents are in the labor force.
The Census Building Permit Survey recorded 10 residential units authorized here in 2024 (Construction Slowdown), down 44% from five years earlier. The annual average temperature per NOAA climate normals runs 46.0°F with 29.5 inches of precipitation per year and 38.0 inches of snowfall.
Living costs in Iowa run below the national norm: the state registers 87.8 on a 100-equals-national-average index (Well Below Average) per BEA Regional Price Parities 2024. 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. Commute times here average 18.0 minutes, with 76.4% driving alone and 3.7% working from home, per Census ACS commuting data. 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 Milford'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 comparison shortlist to climate and hazard context to schools and households to population change to housing and income to work and mobility; another city can have a different sequence or fewer supported layers because the source joins are not uniform.
For Milford, city-specific coverage includes commute-mode shares, local building permits, matched public-school count, annual population history.
No matched row is reported here for FBI reported-crime rates, within-city Census tract profiles; the page leaves those layers out instead of substituting a statewide or national value.
Question 1
Which cities make useful reference points for Milford?
Within Iowa, the closest population matches are Williamsburg (3,347 residents, $65,607 income); Robins (3,349 residents, $122,500 income); Story City (3,363 residents, $73,558 income). Outside the state, the closest population matches in this dataset are West Lake Hills, TX (3,315 residents); Jefferson, OR (3,316 residents); Newbern, TN (3,313 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.
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.
NOAA normals put the annual mean temperature at 46.0°F, with 29.5 inches of precipitation and 38.0 inches of annual snowfall. FEMA's state-averaged National Risk Index score for Iowa is 39.7 out of 100. Climate normals describe long-run weather; the FEMA score on PlainCities is a state average of county NRI inputs and combines hazards, exposure, vulnerability, and resilience.
The two sources should not be blended into one comfort or safety score. Use the climate values for baseline conditions and the risk index as a prompt to inspect specific hazards, insurance, and local emergency guidance for a particular address.
The NCES join finds 3 public schools within the city match. 24.1% of adults age 25+ hold a bachelor's degree or higher in the ACS estimate. These measures answer different questions: the school count describes local institutions, while adult attainment describes residents and cannot be used as a school-quality rating.
The city has a broader matched school footprint, but count alone does not describe performance, capacity, program availability, or attendance boundaries. This profile deliberately avoids converting it into an unsupported family-friendliness score.
Recent estimates point downward. A falling count can reflect migration, household size, annexation boundaries, or estimation noise, so it is a prompt to inspect the full series rather than a claim about local economic health.
Census PEP estimates show the population declined by -126 residents from 2020 to 2025, a -3.8% change. Separately, Census BPS recorded 10 housing units authorized in 2024. PEP and ACS are different Census series, so the trend is kept separate from the headline ACS population.
These joined records add useful context, but they do not need another full-size panel. Each remains a separate measure with its own geography and source boundary.
Housing and income
How far does income reach against housing in Milford?
The home-value-to-income reference sits in a middle range: the ACS median home value is 3.5 times median household income. The ACS poverty estimate is 2.7%, which keeps the citywide median from describing every household.
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. Income and home value move within the same broad scale here. The useful next check is not a generic affordability label, but whether similar-size cities offer a materially different income, housing, or commute trade-off.
Household income
$60,571
Home value
$211,000
Value / income
3.5×
City-level Census ACS 2023 medians. The ratio divides two separate medians and is descriptive only.
What does the journey to work look like in Milford?
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.
Driving alone is the largest reported mode at 76.4%. The reported mean trip to work is 18.0 minutes.
Public transit
0.0%
Work from home
3.7%
Drive alone
76.4%
City-level Census ACS commuting estimates covering 1,841 workers age 16+.
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 A-
2.7%
Share of residents below the poverty line; lower scores better on this axis.
Bachelor's+ share D
24.1%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher; ACS.
Household income F
$60,571
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).
Milford profile (scored ACS/FBI dimensions)Read the chart values
Cost of living: 94/100 (A+) · 87.8 index
Poverty rate: 81/100 (A-) · 2.7%
Bachelor's+ share: 46/100 (D) · 24.1%
Household income: 35/100 (F) · $60,571
How does Milford compare to other US cities?
Here's how Milford stacks up against the full field of US cities (population 1,000+), computed live from Census and FBI data.
Household income36% higher than other cities
Home value46% 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 Milford 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 Milford near the bottom of Iowa's cities
Among the 858 Iowa cities PlainCities tracks with reported median gross rent data, Milford ranks #1 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide percentiles above: it compares Milford only against its own state's cities, not the full US field.
Median Household Income
#527 of 845
38th percentile in Iowa
Median Gross Rent
#1 of 858
0th percentile in Iowa
Median Home Value
#115 of 849
86th percentile in Iowa
Poverty Rate
#631 of 858
26th percentile in Iowa
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
#215 of 858
74th 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
36th percentile nationally for median household income. Source: Census ACS 2023 / FBI UCR 2023.
How Milford's home value compares nationally
Median home value vs. every US city (population 1,000+)
$211,000Among the most affordablemore affordable than 54% 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
Milford's home-value-to-income ratio: 3.5×
ACS median home value divided by median household income.
Band
moderate
3.0–5.0×
National rank
#8,907 of 15,516
More affordable than 43% of tracked cities (pop. 1,000+)
Size class
#7,189 of 11,323
Micro cities (under 10,000)
At 3.5×, Milford sits in the moderate band:
national rank #8,907 of 15,516 and #7,189 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
$60,571Milford, IA median household income (Census ACS)
Show U.S. national quintile / Lorenz context Milford, 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 Milford, IA.
Key socioeconomic indicators
Bachelor's degree or higher (adults 25+)24.1%
Census ACS S1501, educational attainment
Poverty rate (households below FPL)2.7%
Census ACS S1701, poverty status
Labor force participation (adults 16+)68.4%
Census ACS S2301, share of working-age residents in the labor force
Population
3,315
Median Income
$60,571
Median Home Value
$211,000
Median Age
45.8
Poverty Rate
2.7%
Labor force participation
68.4%
Bachelor's Degree+
24.1%
Climate
Avg Temperature
46.0°F
Annual Precipitation
29.5"
Annual Snowfall
38.0"
Schools
Total Schools
3
Public schools in this city
Population Change
PEP vintage
Annual U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program (PEP) estimates, 2020–2025
Milford's Census PEP population estimates, 2020–2025.Read the chart as text
Period
Population
2020
3,335 residents
2021
3,344 residents
2022
3,326 residents
2023
3,283 residents
2024
3,246 residents
2025
3,209 residents
Housing Supply
BPS source
Census Bureau Building Permits Survey (BPS) - annual residential permits authorized
📉 Construction Slowdown
Total Permits (2024)
10
housing units authorized
Single-Family
10
detached homes
Multifamily
0
apartments & condos
Supply Intensity
3
permits per 1,000 residents
5-Year Permit Trend (2019–2024)
Year
Total
Single-Family
Multifamily
Est. Value
2019
18
10
8
$5.1M
2020
20
8
12
$4.8M
2021
24
20
4
$5.3M
2022
12
10
2
$5.2M
2023
11
9
2
$4.4M
2024
10
10
0
$5.7M
Permit volume decreased 44% from 2019 to 2024.
Commute Patterns
Commute source
How workers travel to work, Census ACS 2023
Average Commute Time
18.0 minutes
Drive Alone
76.4%
Carpool
11.9%
Public Transit
0.0%
Walk
2.2%
Work from Home
3.7%
Other
5.8%
Based on 1,841 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 Milford. 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 Milford 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 Milford sits in; the FEMA hazard score shown here is a statewide average of county NRI inputs, not a parcel-level reading.
How Milford 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, NOAA Climate Normals, NCES CCD, 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.