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Place dossier plate
SheetNC-SELMA-NC · Selma, NC 6,611 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 Selma
Lowest/highest poles plus peers nearest Selma on median household income. Full ladder: /browse and /rankings.
median HH income
Riverview · lowest
37,404
Riverview · lowest
37,404 median HH income
15.0% of the leader · rank #1
Davis City · near
37,417
Davis City · near
37,417 median HH income
15.0% of the leader · rank #2
Selma · this city
37,440
Selma · this city
37,440 median HH income
15.0% of the leader · rank #3
Magnolia · near
37,447
Magnolia · near
37,447 median HH income
15.0% of the leader · rank #4
Griggsville · near
37,457
Griggsville · near
37,457 median HH income
15.0% of the leader · rank #5
Sunrise Shores · near
37,462
Sunrise Shores · near
37,462 median HH income
15.0% of the leader · rank #6
Marvin · highest
250,001
Marvin · highest
250,001 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, and FBI crime rate
Out-of-state nearest neighbors for Selma on ACS population and median household income
, plus FBI UCR reporting rate when the extract covers this place. 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: 6,611.
Agency-reported UCR totals per 100,000 population, not a neighborhood safety grade or a prediction of personal risk.
Selma - the verdict
Nationally, Selma sits in the 6th percentile for household income and the 11th percentile for safety among US cities with a population of 1,000 or more. Source: Census ACS + FBI UCR.
6th
percentile, household income
30th
percentile, home value
48th
percentile, median rent
11th
percentile, safety
📝 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: Selma, NC
North Carolina's Selma is a small town, with 6,611 residents per the latest Census Bureau ACS figures. Selma households earn a median of $37,440 annually, in the lower quartile of U.S. cities for household income, with a poverty rate of 25.9%. Typical homes in Selma are valued around $161,100, and the median resident age is 33.6 years. 12.5% of adults here have a bachelor's degree or higher; 55.4% of working-age residents are in the labor force.
Selma's reported crime rate runs above the national norm: FBI UCR reporting places total crime at 3437.3 incidents per 100,000 residents, above the national average (voluntary agency reporting, reflects reporting activity, not a definitive danger score).
Living costs in North Carolina run below the national norm: on BEA's 100-equals-national-average cost index, North Carolina scores 94.3 (Below Average), per the 2024 Regional Price Parities release. A typical two-bedroom carries a HUD Fair Market Rent of $1,161 per month statewide. EIA 2023 residential energy data puts North Carolina's average monthly utility costs around $215 (state average). On FEMA's National Risk Index, this area rates 66.7 out of 100 for natural-hazard exposure (Moderate).
A decision-led reading path
Useful questions to ask of Selma'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 work and mobility to comparison shortlist to reported crime to housing and income to population change to schools and households; another city can have a different sequence or fewer supported layers because the source joins are not uniform.
For Selma, city-specific coverage includes annual population history, commute-mode shares, FBI reported-crime rates, matched public-school count.
No matched row is reported here for within-city Census tract profiles, local building permits; the page leaves those layers out instead of substituting a statewide or national value.
1. Work and mobility
What does the journey to work look like in Selma?
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.
Driving alone is the largest reported mode at 85.4%. A reliable mean commute time is not available for this row, so the mode shares carry the comparison.
Which cities make useful reference points for Selma?
Within North Carolina, the closest population matches are Carolina Beach (6,665 residents, $88,239 income); Marvin (6,542 residents, $250,000+ income); East Flat Rock (6,468 residents, $59,679 income). Outside the state, the closest population matches in this dataset are Lynchburg, TN (6,611 residents); Buena Vista, VA (6,612 residents); Oakdale, LA (6,614 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. The nationwide peer panel below adds a fourth FBI UCR reporting-rate lens, not personal risk.
What can the FBI record say about safety in Selma?
Treat this as a reporting-rate comparison, not a prediction of personal risk or a neighborhood-level safety grade. Tourism, daytime population, reporting practices, and variation inside the city are not adjusted away. The state rank and same-state peer table are the narrower comparisons available on this page.
The joined FBI UCR record reports 3437.3 violent and property crimes per 100,000 residents, above the 2280.5 national reference used here. The difference is 51% higher in arithmetic terms, but agency participation is voluntary and reporting completeness varies.
How far does income reach against housing in Selma?
The home-value-to-income reference is comparatively stretched: the ACS median home value is 4.3 times median household income. The ACS poverty estimate is 25.9%, 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. 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.
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.
Population change
Is Selma growing, shrinking, or holding steady?
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.
Census PEP estimates show the population grew by +1,044 residents from 2020 to 2025, a +16.4% change. No comparable local building-permit series is available here, so population change should not be read as a housing-supply measure. PEP and ACS are different Census series, so the trend is kept separate from the headline ACS population.
Period change
+16.4%
2025 estimate
7,406
2020 estimate
6,362
Census Population Estimates Program, 2020–2025; permit context uses Census BPS.
The NCES join finds 3 public schools within the city match. 12.5% 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.
Matched public schools
3
Bachelor's degree+
12.5%
Poverty estimate
25.9%
NCES Common Core of Data school locations plus Census ACS resident characteristics.
Lowest-decile income · poverty 25.9% (Highest-decile poverty)
Cost of Living Index (state)
94.3 (US=100)
Near national cost · BEA RPP 2024, North Carolina average
F
City profile score · Selma, NC
17/100
5 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 B-
94.3 index
BEA state Regional Price Parities index (100 ≈ national average); lower is stronger on this axis. Same value for every city in the state.
Bachelor's+ share F
12.5%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher; ACS.
Poverty rate F
25.9%
Share of residents below the poverty line; lower scores better on this axis.
Household income F
$37,440
Median household income vs U.S. cities (pop ≥1,000); ACS.
Violent crime F
1,049 /100k
FBI UCR violent offenses per 100,000 residents; lower is stronger on this axis.
Selma profile (scored ACS/FBI dimensions)Read the chart values
Cost of living: 67/100 (B-) · 94.3 index
Bachelor's+ share: 13/100 (F) · 12.5%
Poverty rate: 5/100 (F) · 25.9%
Household income: 3/100 (F) · $37,440
Violent crime: 0/100 (F) · 1,049 /100k
Where Selma sits on home value vs crime among peer cities
Selma's median home value and FBI crime rate plotted with similar-size and
same-state peers (padded with large cities when the peer set is thin). The second
read: pricey does not always mean safer, check which quadrant this city lands in.
Census ACS median home value vs FBI UCR crime rate - Selma highlighted among 23 peers.Read the chart values
Selma, NC (this city): home $161,100, crime 3,437/100k
Buena Vista, VA : home $153,500, crime 379/100k
Carolina Beach, NC : home $487,800, crime 2,183/100k
New York, NY : home $751,700, crime 3,039/100k
Los Angeles, CA : home $879,500, crime 2,212/100k
Chicago, IL : home $315,200, crime 4,012/100k
Houston, TX : home $253,400, crime 5,442/100k
Phoenix, AZ : home $381,900, crime 3,125/100k
Philadelphia, PA : home $232,400, crime 5,457/100k
San Antonio, TX : home $219,700, crime 5,218/100k
San Diego, CA : home $848,500, crime 2,082/100k
Dallas, TX : home $295,300, crime 4,010/100k
San Jose, CA : home $1,187,800, crime 3,195/100k
Austin, TX : home $512,700, crime 3,709/100k
Fort Worth, TX : home $277,300, crime 3,158/100k
Columbus, OH : home $234,500, crime 3,088/100k
Indianapolis, IN : home $207,000, crime 4,214/100k
San Francisco, CA : home $1,380,500, crime 4,526/100k
Seattle, WA : home $912,100, crime 5,783/100k
Denver, CO : home $586,700, crime 5,755/100k
Oklahoma City, OK : home $215,100, crime 3,570/100k
El Paso, TX : home $171,700, crime 1,772/100k
Washington, DC : home $724,600, crime 4,514/100k
How does Selma compare to other US cities?
Where Selma sits among all US cities (population 1,000+) on each measure, computed live from Census and FBI data.
Household income6% higher than other cities
Home value30% pricier than other cities
Median rent48% pricier than other cities
Safety11% safer than other cities
"Safer than" reflects total crime rate from FBI UCR; the others use Census ACS estimates.
Zoom in to just North Carolina and the picture shifts: Selma ranks #132 of 195 North Carolina cities by lowest crime rate, a different read than the national percentile above.
How we calculate these percentiles & ranks
Each percentile compares Selma against every qualifying US city; each in-state rank narrows that to North Carolina only. Full formula and direction notes: methodology.
North Carolina-relative analysis
Median Gross Rent places Selma near the bottom of North Carolina's cities
Among the 746 North Carolina cities PlainCities tracks with reported median gross rent data, Selma ranks #1 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide percentiles above: it compares Selma only against its own state's cities, not the full US field.
Median Household Income
#611 of 700
13th percentile in North Carolina
Median Gross Rent
#1 of 746
0th percentile in North Carolina
Median Home Value
#449 of 708
37th percentile in North Carolina
Poverty Rate
#88 of 746
88th percentile in North Carolina
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
#595 of 746
20th percentile in North Carolina
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 North Carolina only, not a livability score. See the methodology for the source and calculation.
Gauge source note
6th percentile nationally for median household income · 11th percentile for safety (lower crime rate). Source: Census ACS 2023 / FBI UCR 2023.
Selma's profile vs. every US city
Income, affordability, and safety percentile
Selma's percentile rank on 3 favorable-direction measures (income, affordability, safety) vs. every tracked US city -- higher on every axis is more favorable. Not a composite quality score, just the arithmetic mean of the axes shown.
How Selma's home value compares nationally
Median home value vs. every US city (population 1,000+)
$161,100Among the most affordablemore affordable than 70% 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
Selma's home-value-to-income ratio: 4.3×
ACS median home value divided by median household income.
Band
moderate
3.0–5.0×
National rank
#11,532 of 15,516
More affordable than 26% of tracked cities (pop. 1,000+)
Size class
#8,890 of 11,323
Micro cities (under 10,000)
At 4.3×, Selma sits in the moderate band:
national rank #11,532 of 15,516 and #8,890 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
$37,440Selma, NC median household income (Census ACS)
Show U.S. national quintile / Lorenz context Selma, NC median household income (Census ACS 5-year) with U.S. national quintile shares for context. Diagonal = equality; the curve is national, not computed for Selma, NC.
Key socioeconomic indicators
Bachelor's degree or higher (adults 25+)12.5%
Census ACS S1501, educational attainment
Poverty rate (households below FPL)25.9%
Census ACS S1701, poverty status
Labor force participation (adults 16+)55.4%
Census ACS S2301, share of working-age residents in the labor force
Population
6,611
Median Income
$37,440
Median Home Value
$161,100
Median Age
33.6
Poverty Rate
25.9%
Labor force participation
55.4%
Bachelor's Degree+
12.5%
Safety & Crime
Total Crime Rate
3437.3
per 100,000 residents
Violent Crime
1049.1
per 100,000 residents
Property Crime
2388.2
per 100,000 residents
Crime reporting caveat
Reflects incidents reported to the FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting program — agency participation is voluntary and reporting completeness varies by jurisdiction and year, so this reflects reporting activity, not a definitive danger score. Not adjusted for tourism, commuter, or daytime population.
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
Selma's Census PEP population estimates, 2020–2025.Read the chart as text
Period
Population
2020
6,362 residents
2021
6,610 residents
2022
6,818 residents
2023
7,029 residents
2024
7,224 residents
2025
7,406 residents
Commute Patterns
Commute source
How workers travel to work, Census ACS 2023
Drive Alone
85.4%
Carpool
6.6%
Public Transit
0.0%
Walk
1.0%
Work from Home
6.0%
Other
1.0%
Based on 2,789 workers 16 and over.
Monthly Utility Costs
North Carolina statewide monthly utility average (EIA 2023): $215
EIA 2023 residential energy data puts average monthly utilities across North Carolina at $215 (electricity about $115 , water and sewer about $45 ).
These are North Carolina statewide averages, not a meter reading for Selma. Actual bills vary by home size, usage, and local rates. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023.
Living Costs & Risk
North Carolina's BEA cost-of-living index is 94.3 (Below Average; US average = 100, RPP 2024). HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in the county around Selma is $1,161/mo. FEMA's National Risk Index, averaged to North Carolina statewide on PlainCities, rates natural-hazard exposure at 66.7 / 100 (Moderate).
Cost/risk geography note
Cost of living is a North Carolina statewide BEA average; rent is a county-level HUD Fair Market Rent for the county Selma sits in; the FEMA hazard score shown here is a statewide average of county NRI inputs, not a parcel-level reading.
How Selma compares to similar-size North Carolina 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, FBI UCR, NCES CCD, 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.