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Place dossier plate
SheetND-KULM-ND · Kulm, ND 476 pop · income 49th 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 Kulm
Lowest/highest poles plus peers nearest Kulm on median household income. Full ladder: /browse and /rankings.
median HH income
Towner · lowest
53,333
Towner · lowest
53,333 median HH income
53.6% of the leader · rank #1
Kulm · this city
69,318
Kulm · this city
69,318 median HH income
69.6% of the leader · rank #2
Glenwood · near
69,320
Glenwood · near
69,320 median HH income
69.6% of the leader · rank #3
Carroll · near
69,323
Carroll · near
69,323 median HH income
69.6% of the leader · rank #4
Malden · near
69,327
Malden · near
69,327 median HH income
69.7% of the leader · rank #5
Larchwood · near
69,327
Larchwood · near
69,327 median HH income
69.7% of the leader · rank #6
Trenton · highest
99,531
Trenton · highest
99,531 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 Kulm 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: 476.
Measured against every US city with at least 1,000 residents, Kulm lands in the 49th percentile for household income. Source: Census ACS.
49th
percentile, household income
2nd
percentile, home value
7th
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: Kulm, ND
Kulm is a small town in North Dakota, home to 476 residents per U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2023 estimates. Median household income here is $69,318 per year, below the median for U.S. cities on this measure, with a poverty rate of 5.2%. Home values in Kulm run a median of $71,000, and the median resident age is 33.4 years. 18.1% of adults here have a bachelor's degree or higher; 67.4% of working-age residents are in the labor force.
In 2024, 0 residential building permits were authorized in Kulm (No Permits), per Census BPS data.
Living costs in North Dakota run below the national norm: BEA Regional Price Parities 2024 puts North Dakota at 89.0 on a 100-equals-national-average scale (Well Below Average). Statewide, HUD pegs Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom unit at $965 monthly. Statewide, average monthly utility bills in North Dakota run around $200, per EIA 2023 residential energy data. Natural-hazard exposure scores 22.2 out of 100 on FEMA's National Risk Index (Very Low).
A decision-led reading path
Useful questions to ask of Kulm'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 housing and income to schools and households 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 Kulm, city-specific coverage includes commute-mode shares, matched public-school count, annual population history, local building permits.
No matched row is reported here for within-city Census tract profiles, FBI reported-crime rates; 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 Kulm?
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 67.1%. A reliable mean commute time is not available for this row, so the mode shares carry the comparison.
How far does income reach against housing in Kulm?
The home-value-to-income reference is relatively compact: the ACS median home value is 1.0 times median household income. The ACS poverty estimate is 5.2%, 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. The ratio makes housing the clearest place to start this profile, but a low multiple can coexist with slow demand, older stock, or household-level hardship. Compare the home-value distribution and same-state peer table before treating it as an advantage.
The NCES join finds 2 public schools within the city match. 18.1% 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 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.
Which cities make useful reference points for Kulm?
Within North Dakota, the closest population matches are Fessenden (477 residents, $65,125 income); Glenburn (466 residents, $80,000 income); Towner (466 residents, $53,333 income). Outside the state, the closest population matches in this dataset are Crawfordsville, AR (476 residents); Sopchoppy, FL (476 residents); Sigel, IL (476 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.
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 Kulm growing, shrinking, or holding steady?
The recent population line is broadly flat. That makes the composition of change more important than the headline count: housing turnover, household size, and age structure can shift even when the total barely moves.
Census PEP estimates show the population grew by +3 residents from 2020 to 2025, a +0.8% change. Separately, Census BPS recorded 0 housing units authorized in 2024. PEP and ACS are different Census series, so the trend is kept separate from the headline ACS population.
Period change
+0.8%
2025 estimate
372
2020 estimate
369
Census Population Estimates Program, 2020–2025; permit context uses Census BPS.
Below median income · poverty 5.2% (Below-median poverty)
Cost of Living Index (state)
89.0 (US=100)
Affordable · BEA RPP 2024, North Dakota average
C
City profile score · Kulm, ND
59/100
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
89.0 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+
5.2%
Share of residents below the poverty line; lower scores better on this axis.
Household income D
$69,318
Median household income vs U.S. cities (pop ≥1,000); ACS.
Bachelor's+ share F
18.1%
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).
Kulm profile (scored ACS/FBI dimensions)Read the chart values
Cost of living: 89/100 (A) · 89.0 index
Poverty rate: 64/100 (C+) · 5.2%
Household income: 48/100 (D) · $69,318
Bachelor's+ share: 29/100 (F) · 18.1%
How does Kulm compare to other US cities?
Kulm measured against every US city with 1,000+ residents, computed live from the same Census and FBI data shown throughout this page.
Household income49% higher than other cities
Home value2% pricier than other cities
Median rent7% 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 Kulm against every qualifying US city; each in-state rank narrows that to North Dakota only. Full formula and direction notes: methodology.
North Dakota-relative analysis
Median Gross Rent places Kulm near the bottom of North Dakota's cities
Among the 246 North Dakota cities PlainCities tracks with reported median gross rent data, Kulm ranks #1 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide percentiles above: it compares Kulm only against its own state's cities, not the full US field.
Median Household Income
#114 of 227
50th percentile in North Dakota
Median Gross Rent
#1 of 246
0th percentile in North Dakota
Median Home Value
#194 of 226
14th percentile in North Dakota
Poverty Rate
#123 of 246
50th percentile in North Dakota
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
#165 of 246
33rd percentile in North Dakota
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 Dakota only, not a livability score. See the methodology for the source and calculation.
Gauge source note
49th percentile nationally for median household income. Source: Census ACS 2023 / FBI UCR 2023.
How Kulm's home value compares nationally
Median home value vs. every US city (population 1,000+)
$71,000Among the most affordablemore affordable than 98% 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
Kulm's home-value-to-income ratio: 1.0×
ACS median home value divided by median household income.
Band
affordable
< 3.0×
National rank
#43 of 15,516
More affordable than 100% of tracked cities (pop. 1,000+)
Size class
#43 of 11,323
Micro cities (under 10,000)
At 1.0×, Kulm sits in the affordable band:
national rank #43 of 15,516 and #43 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
$69,318Kulm, ND median household income (Census ACS)
Show U.S. national quintile / Lorenz context Kulm, ND median household income (Census ACS 5-year) with U.S. national quintile shares for context. Diagonal = equality; the curve is national, not computed for Kulm, ND.
Key socioeconomic indicators
Bachelor's degree or higher (adults 25+)18.1%
Census ACS S1501, educational attainment
Poverty rate (households below FPL)5.2%
Census ACS S1701, poverty status
Labor force participation (adults 16+)67.4%
Census ACS S2301, share of working-age residents in the labor force
Population
476
Median Income
$69,318
Median Home Value
$71,000
Median Age
33.4
Poverty Rate
5.2%
Labor force participation
67.4%
Bachelor's Degree+
18.1%
Schools
Total Schools
2
Public schools in this city
Population Change
PEP vintage
Annual U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program (PEP) estimates, 2020–2025
Kulm's Census PEP population estimates, 2020–2025.Read the chart as text
Period
Population
2020
369 residents
2021
367 residents
2022
365 residents
2023
366 residents
2024
365 residents
2025
372 residents
Housing Supply
BPS source
Census Bureau Building Permits Survey (BPS) - annual residential permits authorized
Total Permits (2024)
0
housing units authorized
Single-Family
0
detached homes
Multifamily
0
apartments & condos
5-Year Permit Trend (2019–2024)
Year
Total
Single-Family
Multifamily
Est. Value
2019
0
0
0
-
2020
0
0
0
-
2021
0
0
0
-
2022
0
0
0
-
2023
0
0
0
-
2024
0
0
0
-
Commute Patterns
Commute source
How workers travel to work, Census ACS 2023
Drive Alone
67.1%
Carpool
17.1%
Public Transit
0.0%
Walk
1.8%
Work from Home
13.2%
Other
0.8%
Based on 228 workers 16 and over.
Monthly Utility Costs
North Dakota statewide monthly utility average (EIA 2023): $200
EIA 2023 residential energy data puts average monthly utilities across North Dakota at $200 (electricity about $90 , water and sewer about $40 ).
These are North Dakota statewide averages, not a meter reading for Kulm. Actual bills vary by home size, usage, and local rates. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023.
Living Costs & Risk
North Dakota's BEA cost-of-living index is 89.0 (Well Below Average; US average = 100, RPP 2024). HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in the county around Kulm is $965/mo. FEMA's National Risk Index, averaged to North Dakota statewide on PlainCities, rates natural-hazard exposure at 22.2 / 100 (Very Low).
Cost/risk geography note
Cost of living is a North Dakota statewide BEA average; rent is a county-level HUD Fair Market Rent for the county Kulm sits in; the FEMA hazard score shown here is a statewide average of county NRI inputs, not a parcel-level reading.
How Kulm compares to similar-size North Dakota 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.