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Place dossier plate
SheetTX-RUNAWAY-BAY-TX · Runaway Bay, TX 1,522 pop · income 65th 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 Runaway Bay
Lowest/highest poles plus peers nearest Runaway Bay on median household income. Full ladder: /browse and /rankings.
median HH income
Newark · lowest
34,770
Newark · lowest
34,770 median HH income
28.8% of the leader · rank #1
Runaway Bay · this city
83,333
Runaway Bay · this city
83,333 median HH income
68.9% of the leader · rank #2
Clinton · near
83,333
Clinton · near
83,333 median HH income
68.9% of the leader · rank #3
Polk City · near
83,333
Polk City · near
83,333 median HH income
68.9% of the leader · rank #4
McNabb · near
83,333
McNabb · near
83,333 median HH income
68.9% of the leader · rank #5
Homecroft · near
83,333
Homecroft · near
83,333 median HH income
68.9% of the leader · rank #6
Coahoma · highest
120,938
Coahoma · highest
120,938 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 Runaway Bay 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: 1,522.
Agency-reported UCR totals per 100,000 population, not a neighborhood safety grade or a prediction of personal risk.
Runaway Bay - the verdict
Out of every US city with 1,000+ residents, Runaway Bay places in the 65th percentile for household income and the 85th percentile for safety. Source: Census ACS + FBI UCR.
65th
percentile, household income
61st
percentile, home value
40th
percentile, median rent
85th
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: Runaway Bay, TX
1,522 people live in Runaway Bay, Texas - a small town by U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2023 estimates. The typical household in Runaway Bay brings in $83,333 a year, above the median for U.S. cities on this measure, with a poverty rate of 1.8%. Home values in Runaway Bay run a median of $274,700, and the median resident age is 55.9 years. About 33.4% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, while 54.9% of working-age residents are in the labor force.
Housing supply pressure shows in Census Building Permit Survey data: 28 residential units were authorized in 2024 (Rapid Growth), up 33% from five years earlier. Runaway Bay reports a comparatively low crime rate: the FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting program logs 509.0 total incidents per 100,000 residents here, below the national average (agency reporting is voluntary, so this measures reporting activity, not a definitive danger score).
Texas tracks close to the national cost-of-living baseline: on BEA's 100-equals-national-average cost index, Texas scores 97.1 (Near Average), per the 2024 Regional Price Parities release. HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in this state is $1,149 per month. Statewide, average monthly utility bills in Texas run around $223, per EIA 2023 residential energy data. Natural-hazard exposure scores 49.0 out of 100 on FEMA's National Risk Index (Low).
A decision-led reading path
Useful questions to ask of Runaway Bay'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 population change to housing and income; another city can have a different sequence or fewer supported layers because the source joins are not uniform.
For Runaway Bay, city-specific coverage includes annual population history, commute-mode shares, FBI reported-crime rates, local building permits.
No matched row is reported here for matched public-school count, 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 Runaway Bay?
Driving alone is the largest reported mode at 76.2%. 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. Remote work has a visible role in the local pattern. That can reduce commute exposure for some workers, but it says nothing about job availability or broadband quality; read it alongside income and housing rather than as a stand-alone lifestyle score.
Which cities make useful reference points for Runaway Bay?
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.
Within Texas, the closest population matches are New Fairview (1,521 residents, $89,531 income); Gardendale (1,520 residents, $96,974 income); Ralls (1,524 residents, $56,438 income). Outside the state, the closest population matches in this dataset are Newark, AR (1,522 residents); Lee, MA (1,522 residents); Lake LeAnn, MI (1,522 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.
What can the FBI record say about safety in Runaway Bay?
The joined FBI UCR record reports 509.0 violent and property crimes per 100,000 residents, below the 2280.5 national reference used here. The difference is 78% lower in arithmetic terms, but agency participation is voluntary and reporting completeness varies.
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.
Is Runaway Bay growing, shrinking, or holding steady?
Census PEP estimates show the population grew by +656 residents from 2020 to 2025, a +42.2% change. Separately, Census BPS recorded 28 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 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.
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.
Housing and income
How far does income reach against housing in Runaway Bay?
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 3.3 times median household income. The ACS poverty estimate is 1.8%, which keeps the citywide median from describing every household.
Value / income
3.3×
Home value
$274,700
Household income
$83,333
City-level Census ACS 2023 medians. The ratio divides two separate medians and is descriptive only.
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
1.8%
Share of residents below the poverty line; lower scores better on this axis.
Violent crime A
46 /100k
FBI UCR violent offenses per 100,000 residents; lower is stronger on this axis.
Bachelor's+ share C+
33.4%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher; ACS.
Household income C+
$83,333
Median household income vs U.S. cities (pop ≥1,000); ACS.
Cost of living C-
97.1 index
BEA state Regional Price Parities index (100 ≈ national average); lower is stronger on this axis. Same value for every city in the state.
Runaway Bay profile (scored ACS/FBI dimensions)Read the chart values
Poverty rate: 87/100 (A) · 1.8%
Violent crime: 85/100 (A) · 46 /100k
Bachelor's+ share: 64/100 (C+) · 33.4%
Household income: 63/100 (C+) · $83,333
Cost of living: 53/100 (C-) · 97.1 index
Where Runaway Bay sits on home value vs crime among peer cities
Runaway Bay'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 - Runaway Bay highlighted among 25 peers.Read the chart values
Runaway Bay, TX (this city): home $274,700, crime 509/100k
Lee, MA : home $265,900, crime 1,183/100k
Weldon, NC : home $96,000, crime 2,784/100k
Tatum, TX : home $200,800, crime 144/100k
Bruceville-Eddy, TX : home $156,800, crime 821/100k
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 Runaway Bay compare to other US cities?
Here's how Runaway Bay stacks up against the full field of US cities (population 1,000+), computed live from Census and FBI data.
Household income65% higher than other cities
Home value61% pricier than other cities
Median rent40% pricier than other cities
Safety85% safer than other cities
"Safer than" reflects total crime rate from FBI UCR; the others use Census ACS estimates.
Zoom in to just Texas and the picture shifts: Runaway Bay ranks #99 of 624 Texas cities by lowest crime rate, a different read than the national percentile above.
How we calculate these percentiles & ranks
Each percentile compares Runaway Bay against every qualifying US city; each in-state rank narrows that to Texas only. Full formula and direction notes: methodology.
Texas-relative analysis
Median Gross Rent places Runaway Bay near the bottom of Texas's cities
Among the 1,663 Texas cities PlainCities tracks with reported median gross rent data, Runaway Bay ranks #1 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide percentiles above: it compares Runaway Bay only against its own state's cities, not the full US field.
Median Household Income
#402 of 1,520
73rd percentile in Texas
Median Gross Rent
#1 of 1,663
0th percentile in Texas
Median Home Value
#325 of 1,505
78th percentile in Texas
Poverty Rate
#1,359 of 1,663
18th percentile in Texas
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
#319 of 1,663
81st percentile in Texas
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 Texas only, not a livability score. See the methodology for the source and calculation.
Gauge source note
65th percentile nationally for median household income · 85th percentile for safety (lower crime rate). Source: Census ACS 2023 / FBI UCR 2023.
Runaway Bay's profile vs. every US city
Income, affordability, and safety percentile
Runaway Bay'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 Runaway Bay's home value compares nationally
Median home value vs. every US city (population 1,000+)
$274,70039th percentilemore affordable than 39% 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
Runaway Bay's home-value-to-income ratio: 3.3×
ACS median home value divided by median household income.
Band
moderate
3.0–5.0×
National rank
#8,115 of 15,516
More affordable than 48% of tracked cities (pop. 1,000+)
Size class
#6,647 of 11,323
Micro cities (under 10,000)
At 3.3×, Runaway Bay sits in the moderate band:
national rank #8,115 of 15,516 and #6,647 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
$83,333Runaway Bay, TX median household income (Census ACS)
Show U.S. national quintile / Lorenz context Runaway Bay, TX median household income (Census ACS 5-year) with U.S. national quintile shares for context. Diagonal = equality; the curve is national, not computed for Runaway Bay, TX.
Key socioeconomic indicators
Bachelor's degree or higher (adults 25+)33.4%
Census ACS S1501, educational attainment
Poverty rate (households below FPL)1.8%
Census ACS S1701, poverty status
Labor force participation (adults 16+)54.9%
Census ACS S2301, share of working-age residents in the labor force
Population
1,522
Median Income
$83,333
Median Home Value
$274,700
Median Age
55.9
Poverty Rate
1.8%
Labor force participation
54.9%
Bachelor's Degree+
33.4%
Safety & Crime
Total Crime Rate
509.0
per 100,000 residents
Violent Crime
46.3
per 100,000 residents
Property Crime
462.7
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.
Population Change
PEP vintage
Annual U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program (PEP) estimates, 2020–2025
Runaway Bay's Census PEP population estimates, 2020–2025.Read the chart as text
Period
Population
2020
1,556 residents
2021
1,656 residents
2022
1,816 residents
2023
1,988 residents
2024
2,123 residents
2025
2,212 residents
Housing Supply
BPS source
Census Bureau Building Permits Survey (BPS) - annual residential permits authorized
📈 Rapid Growth
Total Permits (2024)
28
housing units authorized
Single-Family
28
detached homes
Multifamily
0
apartments & condos
Supply Intensity
18.4
permits per 1,000 residents
5-Year Permit Trend (2019–2024)
Year
Total
Single-Family
Multifamily
Est. Value
2019
21
21
0
$4.5M
2020
23
18
5
$4.1M
2021
50
48
2
$11.6M
2022
60
60
0
$15.2M
2023
32
32
0
$9.0M
2024
28
28
0
$8.1M
Permit volume increased 33% from 2019 to 2024.
Commute Patterns
Commute source
How workers travel to work, Census ACS 2023
Drive Alone
76.2%
Carpool
3.7%
Public Transit
0.0%
Walk
0.3%
Work from Home
19.9%
Based on 755 workers 16 and over.
Monthly Utility Costs
Texas statewide monthly utility average (EIA 2023): $223
EIA 2023 residential energy data puts average monthly utilities across Texas at $223 (electricity about $130 , water and sewer about $48 ).
These are Texas statewide averages, not a meter reading for Runaway Bay. Actual bills vary by home size, usage, and local rates. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023.
Living Costs & Risk
Texas's BEA cost-of-living index is 97.1 (Near Average; US average = 100, RPP 2024). HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in the county around Runaway Bay is $1,149/mo. FEMA's National Risk Index, averaged to Texas statewide on PlainCities, rates natural-hazard exposure at 49.0 / 100 (Low).
Cost/risk geography note
Cost of living is a Texas statewide BEA average; rent is a county-level HUD Fair Market Rent for the county Runaway Bay sits in; the FEMA hazard score shown here is a statewide average of county NRI inputs, not a parcel-level reading.
How Runaway Bay compares to similar-size Texas 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, 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.