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Alpha, MI

Village in Iron County, MI, US
Last updated
Key Indicators
A quick look at key numbers

Population

215
Source: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates

Median Age

58.7
years ∙ half population younger than 58.7, half older

Diversity Index

Low High
9.1%
chance two random people differ in race and ethnicity

Nativity

0%
foreign-born population
100%Native
0% Foreign-born

Geographic Context

Location, size, and surroundings

About

Alpha is a village within Iron County, Michigan, United States.
Location
Village in Iron County, MI, US
Co-ordinates
DEC46.044033° N, 88.378444° W
DMS46° 02′ 38.52″ N, 88° 22′ 42.40″ W

Population Density & area

227.8/sq mi (87.93/km²)
Total Area
0.996 sq mi (2.58 km²)
Land Area
0.944 sq mi (2.445 km²) · 94.8%
Water Area
0.052 sq mi (0.135 km²) · 5.2%

Demographics & Living

Who lives here, how households are formed, and community composition

Population Composition

Key characteristics of the population

Sex Distribution

42.8% male
Male 42.8%
Female 57.2%
males per 100 females
Alpha 74.8
Iron County 102.4
Michigan 98.2

Nativity

0%
foreign-born population
100%Native
0% Foreign-born
% Foreign-born
Alpha 0%
Iron County 0.9%
Michigan 7.2%
Age Distribution
How the population is spread across age groups

Median Age

58.7
years ∙ half population younger than 58.7, half older
Alpha
58.7
Iron County
53.1
Michigan
40.2

Dependency ratio

Low High
66.7
dependents per 100 working-age adults
Alpha 66.7
Iron County 95.7
Michigan 66.3

AGE DISTRIBUTION

Distribution of age group
Median age
Alpha Iron County Michigan
Age Group
Children (Under 18) 3.7% 17.5% 21.2%
Working age (18-64) 60% 51.1% 60.2%
Senior (65+) 36.3% 31.4% 18.6%
Dependency ratio
Total dependency ratio 66.7 95.7 66.3
Child dependency ratio 6.2 34.3 35.3
Old-age dependency ratio 60.5 61.4 31
Racial & Ethnic Composition
Racial and ethnic makeup and how it compares

Race & Ethnicity

White
95.3%
Black
0%
Asian
0%
Hispanic
0%
Other
4.7%
Note: White, Black, and Asian refer to individuals belonging to a single race and not of Hispanic origin. Hispanics may be of any race.

Diversity Index

Low High
9.1%
chance two random people differ in race and ethnicity
Alpha 9.1%
Iron County 17.7%
Michigan 45.2%
Note: The Diversity Index (DI), based on the Blau Index, measures the probability that two randomly selected individuals differ in race and ethnicity. Values range from 0 (no diversity) to 1 (high diversity) and are shown as percentages.

RACIAL & ETHNIC COMPOSITION

Race & Ethnicity
Percentage of Alpha population
Alpha Iron County Michigan
Hispanic or Latino 0% 2.3% 5.9%
Mexican 0% 1.5% 4%
Puerto Rican 0% 0.3% 0.5%
Cuban 0% 0.1% 0.2%
Other Hispanic / Latino 0% 0.4% 1.2%
Not Hispanic or Latino 100% 97.7% 94.1%
One race 98.1% 94% 89.6%
White 95.3% 90.6% 72.4%
Black or African American 0% 0.9% 13.1%
American Indian and Alaska Native 2.8% 0.8% 0.3%
Asian 0% 0.6% 3.4%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 0% 0% 0%
Some Other Race 0% 1% 0.5%
Two or more races (Multiracial) 1.9% 3.7% 4.5%
Household & Families Composition
Household size, type, and family structure

Household structure

33.9% family
Family 33.9%
Non family 66.1%
% family households
Alpha 33.9%
Iron County 56.9%
Michigan 62.4%

Average household size

1.87
persons per household
Alpha
1.87
Iron County
2.05
Michigan
2.42

Household & Family COMPOSITION

Households
Percentage of Alpha population
Alpha Iron County Michigan
Total households 115 5,547 4,076,369
Average houshold size 1.87 2.05 2.42
Family households 39 3,158 2,545,621
Average family size 1.85 2.59 3.05
Married couple family 23 2,448 1,878,767
Other families 16 710 666,854
Male householder 9 250 199,150
Female householder 7 460 467,704
Non-family households 76 2,389 1,530,748
One-person households 43 2,080 1,250,418
Male householder 15 1,145 583,425
Senior (65+) living alone 8 531 188,594
Female householder 28 935 666,993
Senior (65+) living alone 18 624 349,637
Other living arrangements 33 309 280,330

Housing Profile

Housing stock, ownership, rentals, and cost burdens

Total housing units

148
housing units
Alpha 148
Iron County 9,156
Michigan 4,622,236

Occupancy status

77.7% occupied
Occupied 77.7%
Vacant 22.3%
vacancy rate
Alpha 22.3%
Iron County 39.4%
Michigan 11.8%
Housing Characteristics
How the housing supply is structured and used

Types of Housing unit

83.8%
Single family houses
Single family houses
83.8%
Apartments in multi-unit structures
12.8%
Mobile homes
3.4%
Boat, RV, van, etc
0%

Median Year Built

1941
Half of houses were built before 1941, and half after.
Historic ∙ 1939 or earlier
38.5%
Postwar & mid-century ∙ 1940 - 1969
40.5%
Late 20th century ∙ 1970 - 1999
9.4%
Modern ∙ 2000 or later
11.5%
Note: Median year built reflects occupied units only; distribution includes all units.

Housing Characteristics

Units, rooms & bedrooms
Physical characteristics of housing units
Alpha Iron County Michigan
Rooms per unit
Median rooms 5.1 5.5 5.9
1–3 rooms 12.2% 12.9% 10.5%
4–6 rooms 63.5% 58.2% 51.9%
7+ rooms 24.4% 28.8% 37.6%
Bedrooms
No bedroom / studio 0% 2.4% 1.6%
1 bedroom 17.6% 12.6% 8.9%
2 bedrooms 20.3% 29% 24.6%
3 bedrooms 46.6% 40.3% 43.5%
4+ bedrooms 15.5% 15.8% 21.4%
At a glance
Median year built 1941 1959 1972
Total housing units 148 9,156 4,622,236
Occupancy Profile
Who is inside and how they use it

Homeownership

87.8% owners
Renter-occupied 12.2%
Owner-occupied 87.8%
homeownership rate
Alpha 87.8%
Iron County 84.5%
Michigan 73.2%

Average household size

1.83
Owner-occupied
2.14
Renter-occupied
owner-occupied average size
Alpha 1.83
Iron County 2.07
Michigan 2.54

Housing Characteristics

Occupied unit characteristics
Tenure, crowding, and utilities
Alpha Iron County Michigan
Total occupied units 115 5,547 4,076,369
Year moved in
2020 or later 30.4% 16.5% 21%
2010 to 2019 27.8% 33.9% 39.5%
2000 to 2009 32.2% 16.4% 16%
1999 or earlier 9.6% 33.3% 23.4%
Occupants per room
1.00 or fewer 100% 97.9% 98.4%
1.01 to 1.50 0% 2% 1.2%
1.51 or more 0% 0.1% 0.4%
Vehicles availability
No vehicles 9.6% 6.6% 7%
1 vehicle 26.1% 35.9% 34.8%
2 vehicles 59.1% 40.3% 38.3%
3 or more vehicles 5.2% 17.2% 19.8%
House heating fuel used
Gas 87% 82.1% 83.6%
Electricity 0% 5.4% 12.1%
Solar 0% 0% 0%
Fuel oil, kerosene etc 2.6% 0.9% 0.8%
All other fuels 10.5% 11.1% 3%
No fuel used 0% 0.6% 0.5%
Selected characteristics
Lacking complete plumbing 0% 0.5% 0.4%
Lacking complete kitchen 0% 0.8% 0.7%
No telephone service available 1.7% 1.1% 0.7%
Housing Value
What owner-occupied units are worth

Median home value

$34,100
owner-occupied units
Median value(USD)
Alpha
$34,100
Iron County
$109,100
Michigan
$231,600

Housing Cost Burden

41.6%
of homeowners with a mortgage are cost-burdened
% Cost-Burdened Households
Owners with a mortgage
41.6%
Owners without a mortgage
19.5%
Renters
44.4%
Note: Households spending 30% or more of their income on housing costs are considered cost-burdened.

Financial characteristics

Property value and housing costs
Tenure, crowding, and utilities
Alpha Iron County Michigan
Property value
Median Value $34,100 $109,100 $231,600
Under $100,000 87.1% 45.8% 16.8%
$100,000 - $200,000 8% 26% 24.7%
$200,000 - $300,000 2% 12.6% 23.4%
$300,000 - $500,000 0% 10.3% 24.1%
$500,000 - $1,000,000 3% 4.3% 9.2%
$1,000,000 and more 0% 1.1% 1.6%
Owner-occupied households
With a mortgage 23.8% 40.9% 57.8%
Without a mortgage 76.2% 59.1% 42.2%
Median monthly owner costs
With a mortgage $769 $1,165 $1,569
Without a mortgage $466 $479 $602
Gross rent
Median rent $— $716 $1,129

Education Profile

How educated is the community and how education pays off

Adults with a college degree

8.1%
of adults 25+ with a bachelor's degree or higher
Alpha 8.1%
Iron County 22.5%
Michigan 32.4%

Adults without a high school diploma

10%
of adults (25+) without a high school diploma
Alpha 10%
Iron County 5.2%
Michigan 8%
School Enrollment
Who is enrolled in school and at what level

School enrollment

7
population (age 3+) enrolled in school
Nursery / Preschool
0%
K–12
71.4%
College / Undergraduate
28.6%
Graduate / Professional
0%

College-going rate (18-24 yr olds)

0%
of 18-24-year-olds in college or graduate school
Alpha
0%
Iron County
12.1%
Michigan
41.1%

Enrollment & school type

Enrollment levels, college-going rate, and public vs private school split
Population 3+ currently enrolled in a school
Alpha Iron County Michigan
Total enrolled (age 3+) 7 1,869 2,312,914
Nursery / preschool 0% 6% 5.6%
K–12 71.4% 81% 67.9%
Kindergarten 0% 4.9% 5.2%
Elementary: Grades 1–4 0% 23.6% 19.7%
Elementary: Grades 5–8 57.1% 27.8% 20.8%
High School: Grades 9–12 14.3% 24.8% 22.2%
College or graduate school 28.6% 13% 26.5%
College, undergraduate 28.6% 8.8% 21.1%
Graduate, professional school 0% 4.2% 5.4%
College-going rate · 18-24 yr olds 0% 12.1% 41.1%
School type
Public school 100% 86.2% 85.2%
Private school 0% 13.8% 14.8%
Education Attainment by Level & Gender
What is the highest level of education completed among adults

Education attainment

161
population 25 years and over
Total adults (25+)
Less than 9th grade
5%
9th-12th, no diploma
5%
HS graduate
58.4%
Some college no degree
18%
Associates degree
5.6%
Bachelors degree
6.2%
Graduate or professional degree
1.9%

Attainment by gender

Male vs Female
Adults (25+) · Share within each education level
% male · % female
Less than 9th grade
0% · 100%
9th-12th, no diploma
12.5% · 87.5%
HS graduate
55.3% · 44.7%
Some college no degree
48.3% · 51.7%
Associates degree
100% · 0%
Bachelors degree
30% · 70%
Graduate or professional degree
0% · 100%

Educational Attainment Overview

Distribution and key education attainment rates for adults (25+)
Highest credential completed · adults 25+
Alpha Iron County Michigan
Population (25+) 161 9,009 7,008,507
Less than 9th grade 5% 1.5% 2.6%
9th–12th, no diploma 5% 3.7% 5.4%
High school diploma or GED 58.4% 40.5% 28%
Some college, no degree 18% 20.3% 21.9%
Associate's degree 5.6% 11.5% 9.8%
Bachelor's degree or higher 8.1% 22.5% 32.4%
Bachelor's degree 6.2% 15.3% 19.7%
Graduate or professional 1.9% 7.2% 12.7%
High School or higher 90.1% 94.7% 92.1%
Earnings by education level
percentage as applicable

Median Earnings

$31,250
Median earnings for adults 25+, by level
Less than HS graduate
$—
HS graduate
$36,250
Some college or associates
$38,750
Bachelors degree
$—
Graduate or professional degree
$—

Poverty Rate

0%
for ages 25+, with bachelors degree or higher
Less than HS graduate
31.3%
HS graduate
39.4%
Some college or associates
10.5%
Bachelors degree or higher
0%

Outcomes by Education Level

Earnings and poverty rates across education levels (25+)
Adults 25+
Alpha Iron County Michigan
Median earnings
Population 25+, with earnings $31,250 $39,063 $50,316
Less than high school graduate $— $28,646 $31,851
High school graduate (includes equivalency) $36,250 $33,640 $37,777
Some college or associate's degree $38,750 $38,622 $44,844
Bachelor's degree $— $56,779 $66,893
Graduate or professional degree $— $72,411 $85,195
Poverty rates
Less than high school graduate 31.3% 31.1% 27.4%
High school graduate (includes equivalency) 39.4% 20.1% 15.2%
Some college or associate's degree 10.5% 14.4% 10.3%
Bachelor's degree or higher 0% 4.6% 4.2%

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