City profile · Pennsylvania · Census ACS 2023

Big Bass Lake, PA

Big Bass Lake's Census ACS profile: residents, income, housing, and the joined public-record layers available for this place.

1,388
Residents
$54,785
Median income
$193,100
Median home
$1,225
Median rent (state)
View my watchlist

Compare or rank this city

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.

Compare with another city

Starting with Big Bass Lake, PA - add up to three more cities on the compare page.

See how it ranks

State rank, size-class rank, and four peer cities for Big Bass Lake.

Place dossier plate

Sheet PA-BIG-BASS-LAKE-PA · Big Bass Lake, PA 1,388 pop · income 27th pct

POP-VILLAGE · INC-MID · COL-PAR · SAFE-UNK · RANK-LOWER · PHOTO-FINISH · HOME-LOW · BOOK-UNK

  • POP-VILLAGE 1,388
  • INC-MID $54,785
  • COL-PAR 97.6
  • SAFE-UNK Safety pending
  • RANK-LOWER 27th
  • PHOTO-FINISH ≈ Graham
  • HOME-LOW $193,100
  • BOOK-UNK Tracts pending

Nearest income peer: Graham, NC ( $2 income $)

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 Big Bass Lake

Lowest/highest poles plus peers nearest Big Bass Lake on median household income. Full ladder: /browse and /rankings.

median HH income

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.

Source U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 5-Year Estimates As of 2026-08-08

Compare beyond this state

Nationwide peers by population, income

Out-of-state nearest neighbors for Big Bass Lake 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: 1,388.

4 peers

Similar household income

Nearest out-of-state cities by ACS median household income. This city: $54,785. Population peers are excluded.

4 peers

Big Bass Lake - the verdict

Nationally, Big Bass Lake sits in the 27th percentile for household income among US cities with a population of 1,000 or more. Source: Census ACS.

27th
percentile, household income
41st
percentile, home value
54th
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: Big Bass Lake, PA

Big Bass Lake is a small town in Pennsylvania, home to 1,388 residents per U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2023 estimates. Big Bass Lake households earn a median of $54,785 annually, below the median for U.S. cities on this measure, with a poverty rate of 12.1%. Big Bass Lake's housing stock carries a median value of $193,100, and the median resident age is 47.9 years. Educational attainment runs 14.7% of adults with a bachelor's degree or higher. Separately, 57.0% of working-age residents are in the labor force.

Pennsylvania tracks close to the national cost-of-living baseline: on BEA's 100-equals-national-average cost index, Pennsylvania scores 97.6 (Near Average), per the 2024 Regional Price Parities release. Statewide, HUD pegs Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom unit at $1,225 monthly. Statewide, average monthly utility bills in Pennsylvania run around $260, per EIA 2023 residential energy data. Commute times here average 14.9 minutes, with 83.1% driving alone and 5.8% working from home, per Census ACS commuting data. On FEMA's National Risk Index, this area rates 67.4 out of 100 for natural-hazard exposure (Moderate).

A decision-led reading path

Useful questions to ask of Big Bass Lake'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; another city can have a different sequence or fewer supported layers because the source joins are not uniform.

For Big Bass Lake, city-specific coverage includes commute-mode shares. No matched row is reported here for FBI reported-crime rates, within-city Census tract profiles, matched public-school count, local building permits, annual population history; 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 Big Bass Lake?

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 83.1%. The reported mean trip to work is 14.9 minutes.

Compare commute patterns →

Question 2

How far does income reach against housing in Big Bass Lake?

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 12.1%, 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.

Compare the housing trade-off →

Question 3

Which cities make useful reference points for Big Bass Lake?

Within Pennsylvania, the closest population matches are Elverson (1,392 residents, $76,823 income); Milroy (1,393 residents, $71,366 income); Schwenksville (1,383 residents, $70,833 income). Outside the state, the closest population matches in this dataset are Niland, CA (1,388 residents); Rehoboth Beach, DE (1,388 residents); Atwood, KS (1,388 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.

Open a side-by-side comparison →

Population

1,388 residents

Micro place (under 10k)

Median Household Income

$54,785 /yr

Below median income · poverty 12.1% (Above-median poverty)

Cost of Living Index (state)

97.6 (US=100)

Near national cost · BEA RPP 2024, Pennsylvania average

City profile score · Big Bass Lake, PA

32/100

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 C-
97.6 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
12.1%

Share of residents below the poverty line; lower scores better on this axis.

Household income F
$54,785

Median household income vs U.S. cities (pop ≥1,000); ACS.

Bachelor's+ share F
14.7%

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).

Big Bass Lake profile (scored ACS/FBI dimensions) 4-axis radar comparing 1 series across Cost of living, Poverty rate, Household income, Bachelor's+ share. Cost of livingPoverty rateHousehold incomeBachelor's+ share 32 F
Big Bass Lake profile (scored ACS/FBI dimensions)
Read the chart values
  • Cost of living: 50/100 (C-) · 97.6 index
  • Poverty rate: 31/100 (F) · 12.1%
  • Household income: 27/100 (F) · $54,785
  • Bachelor's+ share: 19/100 (F) · 14.7%

How does Big Bass Lake compare to other US cities?

Big Bass Lake measured against every US city with 1,000+ residents, computed live from the same Census and FBI data shown throughout this page.

Household income 27% higher than other cities
Home value 41% pricier than other cities
Median rent 54% 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 Big Bass Lake against every qualifying US city; each in-state rank narrows that to Pennsylvania only. Full formula and direction notes: methodology.

Pennsylvania-relative analysis

Median Gross Rent places Big Bass Lake near the bottom of Pennsylvania's cities

Among the 1,865 Pennsylvania cities PlainCities tracks with reported median gross rent data, Big Bass Lake ranks #1 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide percentiles above: it compares Big Bass Lake only against its own state's cities, not the full US field.

Median Household Income
#1,304 of 1,765
26th percentile in Pennsylvania
Median Gross Rent
#1 of 1,865
0th percentile in Pennsylvania
Median Home Value
#692 of 1,790
61st percentile in Pennsylvania
Poverty Rate
#445 of 1,856
76th percentile in Pennsylvania
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
#1,359 of 1,861
26th percentile in Pennsylvania
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 Pennsylvania only, not a livability score. See the methodology for the source and calculation.

27thIncome percentile
Gauge source note

27th percentile nationally for median household income. Source: Census ACS 2023 / FBI UCR 2023.

How Big Bass Lake's home value compares nationally

Median home value vs. every US city (population 1,000+)

$193,100 Among the most affordable more affordable than 59% of 15,600 US cities

Show national distribution $0–$25,000: 5 US cities (0%). Below this entry. $25,000–$50,000: 54 US cities (0%). Below this entry. $50,000–$75,000: 352 US cities (2%). Below this entry. $75,000–$100,000: 1,086 US cities (7%). Below this entry. $100,000–$125,000: 1,516 US cities (10%). Below this entry. $125,000–$150,000: 1,170 US cities (8%). Below this entry. $150,000–$175,000: 1,278 US cities (8%). Below this entry. $175,000–$200,000: 1,229 US cities (8%). This entry sits in this band. $200,000–$225,000: 1,035 US cities (7%). Above this entry. $225,000–$250,000: 976 US cities (6%). Above this entry. $250,000–$275,000: 754 US cities (5%). Above this entry. $275,000–$300,000: 712 US cities (5%). Above this entry. $300,000–$325,000: 521 US cities (3%). Above this entry. $325,000–$350,000: 526 US cities (3%). Above this entry. $350,000–$375,000: 465 US cities (3%). Above this entry. $375,000–$400,000: 393 US cities (3%). Above this entry. $400,000–$425,000: 317 US cities (2%). Above this entry. $425,000–$450,000: 300 US cities (2%). Above this entry. $450,000–$475,000: 307 US cities (2%). Above this entry. $475,000–$500,000: 250 US cities (2%). Above this entry. $500,000–$525,000: 160 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $525,000–$550,000: 156 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $550,000–$575,000: 172 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $575,000–$600,000: 172 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $600,000–$625,000: 163 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $625,000–$650,000: 167 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $650,000–$675,000: 135 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $675,000–$700,000: 101 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $700,000–$725,000: 95 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $725,000–$750,000: 71 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $750,000–$775,000: 65 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $775,000–$800,000: 70 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $800,000–$825,000: 57 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $825,000–$850,000: 67 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $850,000–$875,000: 60 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $875,000–$900,000: 58 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $900,000–$925,000: 47 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $925,000–$950,000: 37 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $950,000–$975,000: 31 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $975,000–$1,000,000: 470 US cities (3%). Above this entry. $1,000,000–$1,025,000: 0 US cities (0%). Above this entry. Big Bass Lake $0 $1,025,000 every US city, bucketed by value

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

Big Bass Lake'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
#9,068 of 15,516
More affordable than 42% of tracked cities (pop. 1,000+)
Size class
#7,305 of 11,323
Micro cities (under 10,000)

At 3.5×, Big Bass Lake sits in the moderate band: national rank #9,068 of 15,516 and #7,305 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

$54,785 Big Bass Lake, PA median household income (Census ACS)

Show U.S. national quintile / Lorenz context Household income distribution - Big Bass Lake, PA Big Bass Lake, PA's median household income ($54,785) against the U.S. national quintile-share pattern. The Lorenz curve and quintile bars are national context, not Big Bass Lake, PA-specific shares. $ Household Income Distribution Big Bass Lake, PA median $54,785/yr, vs. U.S. national quintile pattern QUINTILE SHARE OF AGGREGATE INCOME Lowest 20% 3.4% Second 20% 9.2% Middle 20% 15.1% Fourth 20% 23.2% Top 20% 49.1% LORENZ CURVE cumulative income vs. population 100% 0% 100% pop. 0%
Big Bass Lake, PA median household income (Census ACS 5-year) with U.S. national quintile shares for context. Diagonal = equality; the curve is national, not computed for Big Bass Lake, PA.

Key socioeconomic indicators

Bachelor's degree or higher (adults 25+) 14.7%

Census ACS S1501, educational attainment

Poverty rate (households below FPL) 12.1%

Census ACS S1701, poverty status

Labor force participation (adults 16+) 57.0%

Census ACS S2301, share of working-age residents in the labor force

Population
1,388
Median Income
$54,785
Median Home Value
$193,100
Median Age
47.9
Poverty Rate
12.1%
Labor force participation
57.0%
Bachelor's Degree+
14.7%

Commute Patterns

Commute source

How workers travel to work, Census ACS 2023

Average Commute Time
14.9 minutes
Drive Alone
83.1%
Carpool
11.2%
Public Transit
0.0%
Walk
0.0%
Work from Home
5.8%

Based on 626 workers 16 and over.

Monthly Utility Costs

Pennsylvania statewide monthly utility average (EIA 2023): $260

EIA 2023 residential energy data puts average monthly utilities across Pennsylvania at $260 (electricity about $120 , water and sewer about $52 ).

These are Pennsylvania statewide averages, not a meter reading for Big Bass Lake. Actual bills vary by home size, usage, and local rates. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023.

Living Costs & Risk

Pennsylvania's BEA cost-of-living index is 97.6 (Near Average; US average = 100, RPP 2024). HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in the county around Big Bass Lake is $1,225/mo. FEMA's National Risk Index, averaged to Pennsylvania statewide on PlainCities, rates natural-hazard exposure at 67.4 / 100 (Moderate).

Cost/risk geography note

Cost of living is a Pennsylvania statewide BEA average; rent is a county-level HUD Fair Market Rent for the county Big Bass Lake sits in; the FEMA hazard score shown here is a statewide average of county NRI inputs, not a parcel-level reading.

How Big Bass Lake compares to similar-size Pennsylvania 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.

City Population Median Household Income
Big Bass Lake (this city) 1,388 $54,785
Elverson 1,392 $76,823
Milroy 1,393 $71,366
Schwenksville 1,383 $70,833
Primary sources on this page

Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year 2023, 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.

Citation & verification links Data sourced from the U.S. Census Bureau. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainCities

Primary sources: Census ACS, FBI UCR, NOAA Climate Normals, NCES. Joins use OMB Bulletin 23-01 / FIPS keys.

Browse all city profiles → · Explore city rankings →

Verify with HUD →

Verify with FBI →

Verify with NOAA →

Verify with U.S. Census Bureau →

Verify with EPA →

Verify with FEMA →

Verify with BEA →

Verify with EIA →

Verify with NCES →

Estimate caveats

ACS and UCR figures are citywide estimates with vintage lags; they do not replace a local visit, school visit, or insurance quote.

Editorial standards, provenance, and how to cite this page

Every figure on PlainCities is rendered directly from Census ACS source data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page draws directly on Census ACS source data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.

Share or download this profile