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Cost of living, pay and housing

61.68° N · 149.12° W · GEOID 0209657

Buffalo Soapstone

Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska · part of the Anchorage, AK metro

Computed by Citytistics from 13 public sources · Data bundle checked 2026-11-14 · How we calculate

Limited data population under 5,000, core figures borrowed from county or metro: median_gross_rent

AlaskaBuffalo Soapstone, AKBuffalo SoapstoneBuffalo Soapstone

The short answer

Buffalo Soapstone is home to 739 people. Median household income is $68,750 a year and median rent is $1,299 a month, 22.7% of income (a ratio of two medians, not any one household's burden). Rent pressure is lighter than in most places. The median home is valued at $289,300, about 4.2x annual median household income.

Median gross rent
$1,299
5% below the median place
Median household income
$68,750
14% below the median place
Median home value
$289,300
9% below the median place
Unemployment
5.8%
18% above the median place

Compared with the median of the 6,645 places we track. The bundle was checked 2026-11-14; each measure may refer to an older release.

What stands out about Buffalo Soapstone

  • The median resident is 54.1 years old, older than in 96% of the 2,479 places under 10,000 people we track. It is the highest of 24 Alaska places.
  • 23% of homes stand vacant, more than in 91% of places its size. It is the 2nd-highest of 24 Alaska places.
  • Household income has grown 1.2% a year across the last five survey releases, slower than in 89% of places its size.
  • Half the homes were built after 1997, newer housing than in 87% of places its size.
  • 85% of homes are owner-occupied, more than in 82% of places its size.
01

Moving to Buffalo Soapstone

Matanuska-Susitna Borough gains about 10.7 residents per 1,000 a year to moves between counties.

Moved in6,134
Moved out5,138
Net+996

Where people come from and where they go, top counties

Anchorage Municipality, AK1,9511,152+799
Kenai Peninsula Borough, AK236181+55
Fairbanks North Star Borough, AK232123+109
Maricopa County, AZ8479+5
Pierce County, WA6138+23
Juneau City and Borough, AK89
Clark County, WA58
Pima County, AZ52

Within Alaska, other states or abroad

Arrivals
Leavers
Within AlaskaOther statesAbroad

Income per tax return

Arrivals$77K
Leavers$64K

People on tax returns who moved between counties, from IRS migration data, 2022 to 2023. Figures are for all of Matanuska-Susitna Borough; flows under 20 returns are not published.

Who moves here
6.2% of residents arrived from another county in the past year, 2.8% from another state. County figure.
Who arrives and who leaves
Households moving into Matanuska-Susitna Borough report $76,600 a year in income on average; those leaving, $63,600, so newcomers earn more than leavers.
Income you would need
$52,000 a year to rent the median home at the 30% line. From your city
Rent or buy
Median rent is $1,299 a month; owners with a mortgage pay $1,660 a month including taxes and insurance, on a median home of $289,300.
Getting to work
24 minutes each way on average; 20.6% work from home.
If it is close but not quite
Edgewater, FL matches it on character. Compare the two
Net movers per 1,000 people7
10.7
above the median place (median -0.6)
Moved from another state1
2.8%
42% above the median place
Income of households moving out7
$63,580
10% below the median place
All 5 moving measures
MeasureBuffalo SoapstoneAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Moved here in the past year1County figure6.2%7% above
Moved from another state1County figure2.8%42% above
Net movers per 1,000 people7County figure10.7above (median -0.6)
Income of households moving in7County figure$76,6329% above
Income of households moving out7County figure$63,58010% below
02

What it costs to live here

Vacant homes is 23.2%, 228% above the median place.

Buffalo Soapstone22.7%
Typical place20.4%

Share of the median household income that goes to the median rent. Above 30% is the usual stress line.

Income needed to rent
$51,960
a year, at the 30% line
Rent to income
22.7%
11% above the median place
Home price to income
4.2x
11% above the median place

Could you afford it?

The median rent would take
23%
comfortably under the 30% line
Left after rent, in US prices
$51,100
a year
Vs the typical household here
Same
as the median household

Uses the median rent in Buffalo Soapstone, $1,299 a month, and local prices for everything else (104.5 against a US average of 100). It runs in your browser and stores nothing.

Moving from somewhere else? Work out the salary you would need in Buffalo Soapstone.

Sponsored · exampleMoving to Buffalo Soapstone? Compare quotes from licensed movers. No partner is signed yet. Sponsored offers are always labelled and never change the data.
Vacant homes1
23.2%
228% above the median place
Homeownership1
85.2%
28% above the median place
Median year built1
1997
1% above the median place
All 16 cost and housing measures
MeasureBuffalo SoapstoneAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Median gross rent1County figure$1,2995% below
Rent to income122.7%11% above
Property tax rate11.1%26% above
Home price to income14.2x11% above
Prices vs US average2Metro figure105.44% above
Fair market rent, 2 bedrooms3County figure$1,29320% below
HUD area median income4County figure$119,30011% above
Property tax paid (median)1$3,3182% above
Median home value1$289,3009% below
Home prices, 1-year change5County figure5.3%66% above
Home prices, 5-year change5County figure50.1%3% below
Homeownership185.2%28% above
Renters paying 30%+1County figure52.6%4% above
Owner costs with a mortgage1$1,66011% below
Vacant homes123.2%228% above
Median year built119971% above
03

Work and pay

Commutes by transit is 0.0%, below the median place (median 0.8%).

Commutes by transit1
0.0%
below the median place (median 0.8%)
Works from home1
20.6%
65% above the median place
Median household income1
$68,750
14% below the median place

More on work and pay, against the typical place

Poverty rate13.1% +22%
Mean commute24 min −4%
Income per person$38,095 −5%
All 10 work and pay measures
MeasureBuffalo SoapstoneAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Median household income1$68,75014% below
Income per person1$38,0955% below
Unemployment1County figure5.8%18% above
Average annual pay6County figure$61,2127% below
Pay growth, 1 year6County figure4.9%32% above
Jobs6County figure29,97880% below
Poverty rate113.1%22% above
Mean commute124 min4% below
Works from home120.6%65% above
Commutes by transit10.0%below (median 0.8%)
04

Who lives here

Median age is 54.1, 39% above the median place.

Median age1
54.1
39% above the median place
No health insurance1
17.6%
175% above the median place
Bachelor's or higher1
19.7%
39% below the median place

More about who lives here, against the typical place

Household size2.3 −7%
Homes with broadband89.6% −3%
High school or higher91.2% −1%
All 8 people measures
MeasureBuffalo SoapstoneAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Population17396646th largest
Median age154.139% above
Bachelor's or higher119.7%39% below
High school or higher191.2%1% below
Household size12.37% below
Born abroad1County figure2.9%67% below
No health insurance117.6%175% above
Homes with broadband189.6%3% below
05

Life in Buffalo Soapstone

29 sites are on the National Register of Historic Places.

Businesses per 10,000 residents (county figures)

Restaurants and bars18.5 −11%
Shops24.4 −19%
Arts, recreation and fitness6.7 +63%
Doctors' offices and clinics24.8 +23%
Child care centers2.4 +4%

Counts businesses with paid staff, so small owner-run shops are not included.

Arts, recreation and fitness per 10k8
6.7
63% above the median place
Shops per 10k8
24.4
19% below the median place
Students per teacher10
19.3
25% above the median place
All 9 schools and local life measures
MeasureBuffalo SoapstoneAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Public schools10County figure49above (median 9)
Public school students10County figure19,495298% above
Students per teacher10County figure19.325% above
Restaurants and bars per 10k8County figure18.511% below
Shops per 10k8County figure24.419% below
Arts, recreation and fitness per 10k8County figure6.763% above
Doctors' offices and clinics per 10k8County figure24.823% above
Child care centers per 10k8County figure2.44% above
National Register listings9County figure29123% above
06

Safety, weather and risk

Median air quality index is 9, 79% below the median place.

No crime figure yet. Either the city police department did not report to the FBI for the latest year, or our monthly fetch has not reached Buffalo Soapstone. Larger places are fetched first.

Median air quality index13
9
79% below the median place
Average temperature11
29°F
46% below the median place
July average high11
60°F
31% below the median place
All 9 weather and risk measures
MeasureBuffalo SoapstoneAmong 6,645 placesVs median
July average high11County figure60°F31% below
January average low11County figure3°F87% below
Average temperature11County figure29°F46% below
Annual precipitation11County figure34.8 in21% below
Natural hazard risk12County figure93.31% above
Tornado risk12County figure0.999% below
Wildfire risk12County figure94.755% above
Median air quality index13County figure979% below
Good air days13County figure91.5%34% above
08

Buffalo Soapstone in 2030: where the trends point

If recent trends hold, the median rent will take about 14% of the median income in 2030, about the same as 14% now.

Citytistics projections to 2030: each figure's own trend, blended with the typical trend across the places we rate, eased toward long-run US growth and carried forward from the latest release. The range is where 80% of places landed when we tested the same method on past releases.

MeasureLatest2030 projectionLikely rangeAvg. per year
Median rent$791/mo (2024)$980/mo$810 to $1,200/mo+3.7%
Median household income$68,750 (2024)$85,500$72,500 to $101,500+3.7%
Median home value$289,300 (2024)$404,000$293,000 to $556,000+5.7%

The median home would be worth 4.7 years of the median income in 2030, against 4.2 now.

A projection of recent trends, not a prediction of the economy or advice to buy or sell. How we project.

09

Places like Buffalo Soapstone

The closest matches on income, rent, home value, education and age, and the places nearby.

PlaceRentIncome
Edgewater, FL$1,309$60,977Compare
Foley, AL$1,242$66,336Compare
Tucson Estates, AZ$1,248$66,582Compare
Mims, FL$1,250$59,005Compare
Mims, FLTucson Estates, AZFoley, ALEdgewater, FLBuffalo Soapstone, AKBuffalo SoapstoneEdgewaterFoleyTucson EstatesMimsBuffalo SoapstoneEdgewaterFoleyTucson EstatesMims

Common questions

Is Buffalo Soapstone a good place to live?

It depends on what you need, so here is what the numbers say. The median resident is 54.1 years old, older than in 96% of the 2,479 places under 10,000 people we track. It is the highest of 24 Alaska places. 23% of homes stand vacant, more than in 91% of places its size. It is the 2nd-highest of 24 Alaska places. On cost, space and class size it scores 41 out of 100 for families. See how it ranks with your own weights.

Is Buffalo Soapstone expensive to live in?

The median rent takes 22.7% of the median household income, against 20.4% in the typical place we track. Housing is a heavier load here than usual. The median home is valued at $289,300.

What salary do you need to live in Buffalo Soapstone?

To rent the median home without spending more than 30% of income on rent, a household needs about $51,960 a year. Work it out from your current city.

What places are similar to Buffalo Soapstone?

On income, rent, home value, education and age, the closest matches are Edgewater, FL, Foley, AL, Tucson Estates, AZ and Mims, FL.

Sources and methods

The small numbers beside each measure point here. Every dataset is public; links go to the publisher.

  1. American Community Survey 5-year estimates · US Census Bureau · 2020 to 2024 estimatesTables B01002, B01003, B05002, B07003, B08013, B08301, B15003, B17001, B19013, B19301, B23025, B25002, B25003, B25010, B25035, B25064, B25070, B25077, B25088, B25103, B28002, S2701
  2. Regional Price Parities · US Bureau of Economic Analysis · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14
  3. Fair Market Rents · US Department of Housing and Urban Development · Fiscal year 2027
  4. Income Limits · US Department of Housing and Urban Development · Fiscal year 2026
  5. House Price Index · Federal Housing Finance Agency · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14
  6. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages · US Bureau of Labor Statistics · 2025 annual averages
  7. SOI Tax Stats, county-to-county migration · Internal Revenue Service · Tax years 2022 to 2023Counts tax returns and the people on them; flows under 20 returns are suppressed.
  8. County Business Patterns · US Census Bureau · 2023 data
  9. National Register of Historic Places · National Park Service · Listings through 2026-05-22
  10. Common Core of Data · National Center for Education Statistics · 2024 release
  11. 1991-2020 climate normals · NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information · Series updated 2026-11-05Averages for 1991 to 2020 computed from NOAA's county climate series (nClimDiv).nClimDiv county series
  12. National Risk Index · Federal Emergency Management Agency · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14NRI data and maps
  13. Air Quality System, annual AQI by county · US Environmental Protection Agency · 2025 dataAirData download files

Derived by Citytistics from the tables above: rent to income (B25064, B19013); property tax rate (B25103, B25077); home price to income (B25077, B19013).

What stands out compares Buffalo Soapstone with places of a similar size, using only figures measured for Buffalo Soapstone itself; county and metro figures never count. Survey figures are estimates with margins of error. Formulas and definitions: methodology. API: /api/v1/places/buffalo-soapstone-alaska

Citytistics. “Buffalo Soapstone, Alaska.” Data as of 2026-11-14. https://www.citytistics.com/city/buffalo-soapstone-alaska/

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.