Do you live in one of the Austin-area’s "Super Zips?"
Sifting through 2010 Census data, the Washington Post recently took a closer look at the country’s pockets of prosperity and education. Drawing on the concept of Super Zips – Zip codes in the 95th percentile for median incomes and college degrees – the Post created an interactive map showing the increased economic segmentation of the country.
In the Post’s interactive map, Bee Cave, Westlake, and several other Austin-area neighborhoods are named as Super Zips. In total, the Austin-area is home to eight Super Zips, all ranked between the 95th and 99th percentile. Here they are, in order of highest median household income:
- 78739: With a score of 98, this area close to Bear Creek has a median household income of $132,552. 79 percent of the population are college graduates.
- 78746: Rollingwood scored a 99. The average median household income is $129,188; 79 percent of the adults in the area are college graduates.
- 78732: Close to the Bee Cave area, this Super Zip also scored 99. $125,171 is the median income, and 78 percent are college graduates.
- 78730: With a score of 98, median income for this Super Zip is $121,765. 77 percent of adults are college graduates.
- 78738: The Bee Cave region has a score of 98. Median household income is $121,522; 71 percent are college graduates.
- 78733: This zip scored a 98. Median household income is $119,516; 69 percent of adults are college grads.
- 78737: With a score of 96, median income is $115,714 in this zip. 61 percent of adults are college graduates.
- 78619: The Driftwood area qualifies as a Super Zip with a score of 95. Median household income is $97,841; 63 percent are college graduates.
Overall, the Washington Post highlights 650 Super Zips across the nation.
The significance of these findings? "Several studies show that elites are becoming more isolated, while in the past there was more interaction between classes," the Post writes. Rice University sociologist Stephen Klineberg tells the Post the divide confines poorer Americans “to communities where no one has a college education and no one has connections to the world … The social capital that’s so necessary for upward mobility is more difficult to come by than it was in the old days when there was broad-based prosperity.”
To learn more about your neighborhood, enter your zip code to see your area’s ranking.
