Side-by-side metrics and state or size-class ranks use the same Census and FBI fields shown on this profile. Results stay in the URL so you can bookmark or share them.
Place dossier plate
SheetMI-SOUTH-ROCKWOOD-MI · South Rockwood, MI 1,891 pop · income 59th 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 South Rockwood
Lowest/highest poles plus peers nearest South Rockwood on median household income. Full ladder: /browse and /rankings.
median HH income
Salyersville · lowest
30,714
Salyersville · lowest
30,714 median HH income
20.5% of the leader · rank #1
Calumet · near
78,059
Calumet · near
78,059 median HH income
52.2% of the leader · rank #2
South Rockwood · this city
78,063
South Rockwood · this city
78,063 median HH income
52.2% of the leader · rank #3
Brent · near
78,068
Brent · near
78,068 median HH income
52.2% of the leader · rank #4
Russellton · near
78,068
Russellton · near
78,068 median HH income
52.2% of the leader · rank #5
Somers · near
78,068
Somers · near
78,068 median HH income
52.2% of the leader · rank #6
East Atlantic… · highest
149,559
East Atlantic… · highest
149,559 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 South Rockwood 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: 1,891.
Measured against every US city with at least 1,000 residents, South Rockwood lands in the 59th percentile for household income. Source: Census ACS.
59th
percentile, household income
48th
percentile, home value
32nd
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: South Rockwood, MI
Census ACS 2023 estimates count 1,891 residents in South Rockwood, a small town within Michigan. South Rockwood households earn a median of $78,063 annually, above the median for U.S. cities on this measure, with a poverty rate of 11.0%. Home values in South Rockwood run a median of $217,800, and the median resident age is 39.1 years. Educational attainment runs 18.9% of adults with a bachelor's degree or higher. Separately, 66.4% of working-age residents are in the labor force.
The Census Building Permit Survey recorded 1 residential units authorized here in 2024 (Low Activity).
Living costs in Michigan run below the national norm: BEA Regional Price Parities 2024 puts Michigan at 96.2 on a 100-equals-national-average scale (Below Average). HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in this state is $1,113 per month. Monthly utility costs average around $238 across Michigan, per EIA 2023 residential energy estimates. On FEMA's National Risk Index, this area rates 49.6 out of 100 for natural-hazard exposure (Low).
A decision-led reading path
Useful questions to ask of South Rockwood'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 comparison shortlist to population change to schools and households to work and mobility; another city can have a different sequence or fewer supported layers because the source joins are not uniform.
For South Rockwood, city-specific coverage includes local building permits, annual population history, commute-mode shares, matched public-school count.
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.
1. Housing and income
How far does income reach against housing in South Rockwood?
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.
The home-value-to-income reference sits in a middle range: the ACS median home value is 2.8 times median household income. The ACS poverty estimate is 11.0%, which keeps the citywide median from describing every household.
Which cities make useful reference points for South Rockwood?
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 Michigan, the closest population matches are Fennville (1,880 residents, $65,268 income); Capac (1,903 residents, $61,000 income); Watervliet (1,879 residents, $57,477 income). Outside the state, the closest population matches in this dataset are Salyersville, KY (1,891 residents); Victory Gardens, NJ (1,891 residents); Fallsburg, NY (1,891 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 South Rockwood growing, shrinking, or holding steady?
Census PEP estimates show the population declined by -18 residents from 2020 to 2025, a -1.1% change. Separately, Census BPS recorded 1 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 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.
What does the education layer cover for South Rockwood?
The matched institution count is small, so district boundaries and schools outside the city line may matter more than the municipal count suggests. Use the number as a coverage cue, then verify attendance zones with the district before making a household decision.
The NCES join finds 1 public school within the city match. 18.9% 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.
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.
Work and mobility
What does the journey to work look like in South Rockwood?
Driving alone is the largest reported mode at 87.4%. 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. The profile is strongly car-oriented, so a relocation comparison should put trip distance, vehicle access, and household fuel costs ahead of a citywide commute average. The same-state peer links offer a more relevant benchmark than a national label.
Drive alone
87.4%
Work from home
6.7%
Public transit
0.0%
City-level Census ACS commuting estimates covering 979 workers age 16+.
Above median income · poverty 11.0% (Above-median poverty)
Cost of Living Index (state)
96.2 (US=100)
Near national cost · BEA RPP 2024, Michigan average
D
City profile score · South Rockwood, MI
47/100
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.
Household income C
$78,063
Median household income vs U.S. cities (pop ≥1,000); ACS.
Cost of living C
96.2 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 F
11.0%
Share of residents below the poverty line; lower scores better on this axis.
Bachelor's+ share F
18.9%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher; ACS.
Violent crime N/A
N/A
No FBI UCR violent-crime rate for this place (coverage is incomplete).
South Rockwood profile (scored ACS/FBI dimensions)Read the chart values
Household income: 57/100 (C) · $78,063
Cost of living: 57/100 (C) · 96.2 index
Poverty rate: 36/100 (F) · 11.0%
Bachelor's+ share: 31/100 (F) · 18.9%
How does South Rockwood compare to other US cities?
South Rockwood measured against every US city with 1,000+ residents, computed live from the same Census and FBI data shown throughout this page.
Household income59% higher than other cities
Home value48% pricier than other cities
Median rent32% 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 South Rockwood against every qualifying US city; each in-state rank narrows that to Michigan only. Full formula and direction notes: methodology.
Michigan-relative analysis
Median Gross Rent places South Rockwood near the bottom of Michigan's cities
Among the 727 Michigan cities PlainCities tracks with reported median gross rent data, South Rockwood ranks #1 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide percentiles above: it compares South Rockwood only against its own state's cities, not the full US field.
Median Household Income
#151 of 718
79th percentile in Michigan
Median Gross Rent
#1 of 727
0th percentile in Michigan
Median Home Value
#183 of 721
75th percentile in Michigan
Poverty Rate
#272 of 727
62nd percentile in Michigan
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
#373 of 727
48th percentile in Michigan
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 Michigan only, not a livability score. See the methodology for the source and calculation.
Gauge source note
59th percentile nationally for median household income. Source: Census ACS 2023 / FBI UCR 2023.
How South Rockwood's home value compares nationally
Median home value vs. every US city (population 1,000+)
$217,800Among the most affordablemore affordable than 52% 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
South Rockwood's home-value-to-income ratio: 2.8×
ACS median home value divided by median household income.
Band
affordable
< 3.0×
National rank
#5,526 of 15,516
More affordable than 64% of tracked cities (pop. 1,000+)
Size class
#4,806 of 11,323
Micro cities (under 10,000)
At 2.8×, South Rockwood sits in the affordable band:
national rank #5,526 of 15,516 and #4,806 of 11,323micro cities (under 10,000).
The multiple is comparatively compact among tracked cities, but a low ratio can still coexist with slow demand or household-level hardship.
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
$78,063South Rockwood, MI median household income (Census ACS)
Show U.S. national quintile / Lorenz context South Rockwood, MI median household income (Census ACS 5-year) with U.S. national quintile shares for context. Diagonal = equality; the curve is national, not computed for South Rockwood, MI.
Key socioeconomic indicators
Bachelor's degree or higher (adults 25+)18.9%
Census ACS S1501, educational attainment
Poverty rate (households below FPL)11.0%
Census ACS S1701, poverty status
Labor force participation (adults 16+)66.4%
Census ACS S2301, share of working-age residents in the labor force
Population
1,891
Median Income
$78,063
Median Home Value
$217,800
Median Age
39.1
Poverty Rate
11.0%
Labor force participation
66.4%
Bachelor's Degree+
18.9%
Schools
Total Schools
1
Public schools in this city
Population Change
PEP vintage
Annual U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program (PEP) estimates, 2020–2025
South Rockwood's Census PEP population estimates, 2020–2025.Read the chart as text
Period
Population
2020
1,594 residents
2021
1,597 residents
2022
1,583 residents
2023
1,583 residents
2024
1,579 residents
2025
1,576 residents
Housing Supply
BPS source
Census Bureau Building Permits Survey (BPS) - annual residential permits authorized
🏗️ Low Activity
Total Permits (2024)
1
housing units authorized
Single-Family
1
detached homes
Multifamily
0
apartments & condos
Supply Intensity
0.5
permits per 1,000 residents
5-Year Permit Trend (2019–2024)
Year
Total
Single-Family
Multifamily
Est. Value
2019
0
0
0
-
2020
1
1
0
$0.2M
2021
1
1
0
$0.2M
2022
0
0
0
-
2023
0
0
0
-
2024
1
1
0
$0.4M
Commute Patterns
Commute source
How workers travel to work, Census ACS 2023
Drive Alone
87.4%
Carpool
4.8%
Public Transit
0.0%
Walk
0.5%
Work from Home
6.7%
Other
0.6%
Based on 979 workers 16 and over.
Monthly Utility Costs
Michigan statewide monthly utility average (EIA 2023): $238
EIA 2023 residential energy data puts average monthly utilities across Michigan at $238 (electricity about $105 , water and sewer about $48 ).
These are Michigan statewide averages, not a meter reading for South Rockwood. Actual bills vary by home size, usage, and local rates. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023.
Living Costs & Risk
Michigan's BEA cost-of-living index is 96.2 (Below Average; US average = 100, RPP 2024). HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in the county around South Rockwood is $1,113/mo. FEMA's National Risk Index, averaged to Michigan statewide on PlainCities, rates natural-hazard exposure at 49.6 / 100 (Low).
Cost/risk geography note
Cost of living is a Michigan statewide BEA average; rent is a county-level HUD Fair Market Rent for the county South Rockwood sits in; the FEMA hazard score shown here is a statewide average of county NRI inputs, not a parcel-level reading.
How South Rockwood compares to similar-size Michigan 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, 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.