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Place dossier plate
SheetNE-HOOPER-NE · Hooper, NE 1,078 pop · income 57th 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 Hooper
Lowest/highest poles plus peers nearest Hooper on median household income. Full ladder: /browse and /rankings.
median HH income
Caraway · lowest
41,667
Caraway · lowest
41,667 median HH income
26.3% of the leader · rank #1
Hooper · this city
75,800
Hooper · this city
75,800 median HH income
47.8% of the leader · rank #2
Georgetown · near
75,804
Georgetown · near
75,804 median HH income
47.8% of the leader · rank #3
La Conner · near
75,804
La Conner · near
75,804 median HH income
47.8% of the leader · rank #4
Bowman · near
75,805
Bowman · near
75,805 median HH income
47.8% of the leader · rank #5
Claymont · near
75,808
Claymont · near
75,808 median HH income
47.8% of the leader · rank #6
Lamont · highest
158,456
Lamont · highest
158,456 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 Hooper 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: 1,078.
Out of every US city with 1,000+ residents, Hooper places in the 57th percentile for household income. Source: Census ACS.
57th
percentile, household income
33rd
percentile, home value
15th
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: Hooper, NE
Nebraska's Hooper is a small town, with 1,078 residents per the latest Census Bureau ACS figures. Households in Hooper report a median income of $75,800 per year, above the median for U.S. cities on this measure, with a poverty rate of 1.6%. Hooper's housing stock carries a median value of $168,100, and the median resident age is 32.7 years. Educational attainment runs 27.0% of adults with a bachelor's degree or higher. Separately, 64.6% of working-age residents are in the labor force.
In 2024, 1 residential building permits were authorized in Hooper (Construction Slowdown), down 80% from five years earlier, per Census BPS data.
Living costs in Nebraska run below the national norm: on BEA's 100-equals-national-average cost index, Nebraska scores 90.1 (Well Below Average), per the 2024 Regional Price Parities release. Statewide, HUD pegs Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom unit at $1,001 monthly. Statewide, average monthly utility bills in Nebraska run around $207, per EIA 2023 residential energy data. On FEMA's National Risk Index, this area rates 25.8 out of 100 for natural-hazard exposure (Very Low).
A decision-led reading path
Useful questions to ask of Hooper'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 comparison shortlist to schools and households to population change; another city can have a different sequence or fewer supported layers because the source joins are not uniform.
For Hooper, 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
What does the journey to work look like in Hooper?
Driving alone is the largest reported mode at 88.7%. 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.
How far does income reach against housing in Hooper?
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 home-value-to-income reference is relatively compact: the ACS median home value is 2.2 times median household income. The ACS poverty estimate is 1.6%, which keeps the citywide median from describing every household.
Which cities make useful reference points for Hooper?
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 Nebraska, the closest population matches are Friend (1,085 residents, $84,861 income); Eagle (1,089 residents, $76,500 income); Utica (1,092 residents, $81,797 income). Outside the state, the closest population matches in this dataset are Brilliant, AL (1,078 residents); Caraway, AR (1,078 residents); Jekyll Island, GA (1,078 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.
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 2 public schools within the city match. 27.0% 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.
Population change
Is Hooper growing, shrinking, or holding steady?
Census PEP estimates show the population declined by -66 residents from 2020 to 2025, a -7.7% 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.
2020 estimate
859
2025 estimate
793
Period change
-7.7%
Census Population Estimates Program, 2020–2025; permit context uses Census BPS.
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.
Poverty rate A
1.6%
Share of residents below the poverty line; lower scores better on this axis.
Cost of living A
90.1 index
BEA state Regional Price Parities index (100 ≈ national average); lower is stronger on this axis. Same value for every city in the state.
Household income C
$75,800
Median household income vs U.S. cities (pop ≥1,000); ACS.
Bachelor's+ share C-
27.0%
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).
Hooper profile (scored ACS/FBI dimensions)Read the chart values
Poverty rate: 89/100 (A) · 1.6%
Cost of living: 85/100 (A) · 90.1 index
Household income: 55/100 (C) · $75,800
Bachelor's+ share: 53/100 (C-) · 27.0%
How does Hooper compare to other US cities?
Here's how Hooper stacks up against the full field of US cities (population 1,000+), computed live from Census and FBI data.
Household income57% higher than other cities
Home value33% pricier than other cities
Median rent15% 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 Hooper against every qualifying US city; each in-state rank narrows that to Nebraska only. Full formula and direction notes: methodology.
Nebraska-relative analysis
Median Gross Rent places Hooper near the bottom of Nebraska's cities
Among the 450 Nebraska cities PlainCities tracks with reported median gross rent data, Hooper ranks #1 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide percentiles above: it compares Hooper only against its own state's cities, not the full US field.
Median Household Income
#118 of 439
73rd percentile in Nebraska
Median Gross Rent
#1 of 450
0th percentile in Nebraska
Median Home Value
#103 of 438
76th percentile in Nebraska
Poverty Rate
#364 of 450
19th percentile in Nebraska
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
#95 of 450
79th percentile in Nebraska
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 Nebraska only, not a livability score. See the methodology for the source and calculation.
Gauge source note
57th percentile nationally for median household income. Source: Census ACS 2023 / FBI UCR 2023.
How Hooper's home value compares nationally
Median home value vs. every US city (population 1,000+)
$168,100Among the most affordablemore affordable than 67% 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
Hooper's home-value-to-income ratio: 2.2×
ACS median home value divided by median household income.
Band
affordable
< 3.0×
National rank
#2,547 of 15,516
More affordable than 84% of tracked cities (pop. 1,000+)
Size class
#2,383 of 11,323
Micro cities (under 10,000)
At 2.2×, Hooper sits in the affordable band:
national rank #2,547 of 15,516 and #2,383 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
$75,800Hooper, NE median household income (Census ACS)
Show U.S. national quintile / Lorenz context Hooper, NE median household income (Census ACS 5-year) with U.S. national quintile shares for context. Diagonal = equality; the curve is national, not computed for Hooper, NE.
Key socioeconomic indicators
Bachelor's degree or higher (adults 25+)27.0%
Census ACS S1501, educational attainment
Poverty rate (households below FPL)1.6%
Census ACS S1701, poverty status
Labor force participation (adults 16+)64.6%
Census ACS S2301, share of working-age residents in the labor force
Population
1,078
Median Income
$75,800
Median Home Value
$168,100
Median Age
32.7
Poverty Rate
1.6%
Labor force participation
64.6%
Bachelor's Degree+
27.0%
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
Hooper's Census PEP population estimates, 2020–2025.Read the chart as text
Period
Population
2020
859 residents
2021
831 residents
2022
798 residents
2023
790 residents
2024
793 residents
2025
793 residents
Housing Supply
BPS source
Census Bureau Building Permits Survey (BPS) - annual residential permits authorized
📉 Construction Slowdown
Total Permits (2024)
1
housing units authorized
Single-Family
1
detached homes
Multifamily
0
apartments & condos
Supply Intensity
0.9
permits per 1,000 residents
5-Year Permit Trend (2019–2024)
Year
Total
Single-Family
Multifamily
Est. Value
2019
5
5
0
$1.4M
2020
1
1
0
$0.5M
2021
0
0
0
-
2022
1
1
0
$0.4M
2023
2
2
0
$0.5M
2024
1
1
0
$0.3M
Permit volume decreased 80% from 2019 to 2024.
Commute Patterns
Commute source
How workers travel to work, Census ACS 2023
Drive Alone
88.7%
Carpool
5.1%
Public Transit
0.0%
Walk
2.5%
Work from Home
3.2%
Based on 433 workers 16 and over.
Monthly Utility Costs
Nebraska statewide monthly utility average (EIA 2023): $207
EIA 2023 residential energy data puts average monthly utilities across Nebraska at $207 (electricity about $100 , water and sewer about $42 ).
These are Nebraska statewide averages, not a meter reading for Hooper. Actual bills vary by home size, usage, and local rates. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023.
Living Costs & Risk
Nebraska's BEA cost-of-living index is 90.1 (Well Below Average; US average = 100, RPP 2024). HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in the county around Hooper is $1,001/mo. FEMA's National Risk Index, averaged to Nebraska statewide on PlainCities, rates natural-hazard exposure at 25.8 / 100 (Very Low).
Cost/risk geography note
Cost of living is a Nebraska statewide BEA average; rent is a county-level HUD Fair Market Rent for the county Hooper sits in; the FEMA hazard score shown here is a statewide average of county NRI inputs, not a parcel-level reading.
How Hooper compares to similar-size Nebraska 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.