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Cost of living, pay and housing

39.12° N · 75.52° W · GEOID 1034810

Highland Acres

Kent County, Delaware · part of the Dover, DE metro

Limited data population under 5,000

DelawareHighland Acres, DEHighland AcresHighland Acres

The short answer

Highland Acres is home to 3,752 people. Median household income is $102,356 a year and median rent is $1,583 a month, 18.6% 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 $306,400, about 3.0x annual median household income.

Median gross rent
$1,583
16% above the median place
Median household income
$102,356
27% above the median place
Median home value
$306,400
4% below the median place
Unemployment
4.5%
9% below 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 Highland Acres

  • Between the 2019 and 2024 surveys, rent rose 10.3% a year while household income rose 3.2%, so rent outran pay by more than in 94% of the 2,476 places under 10,000 people we track. It is the 3rd-highest of 21 Delaware places.
  • Households average 3.00 people, larger than in 88% of places its size. It is the highest of 21 Delaware places.
  • 3% of residents were born outside the US, fewer than in 86% of places its size. It is the lowest of 20 Delaware places.
  • Owning with a mortgage costs only about $161 a month more than the median rent, a smaller gap than in 87% of places its size.
01

Moving to Highland Acres

Kent County gains about 10.5 residents per 1,000 a year to moves between counties.

Moved in9,709
Moved out8,148
Net+1,561

Where people come from and where they go, top counties

Caroline County, MD11472+42
Kings County, NY183
Queens County, NY143

Within Delaware, other states or abroad

Arrivals
Leavers
Within DelawareOther statesAbroad

Income per tax return

Arrivals$57K
Leavers$56K

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

Who moves here
4.9% 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 Kent County report $56,600 a year in income on average; those leaving, $55,700.
Income you would need
$63,300 a year to rent the median home at the 30% line. From your city
Rent or buy
Median rent is $1,583 a month; owners with a mortgage pay $1,744 a month including taxes and insurance, on a median home of $306,400.
Getting to work
22 minutes each way on average; 8.9% work from home; 1.0% take transit.
If it is close but not quite
Newington, CT matches it on character. Compare the two
Net movers per 1,000 people7
10.5
above the median place (median -0.6)
Income of households moving out7
$55,689
21% below the median place
Income of households moving in7
$56,599
20% below the median place
All 5 moving measures
MeasureHighland AcresAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Moved here in the past year1County figure4.9%14% below
Moved from another state1County figure2.8%40% above
Net movers per 1,000 people7County figure10.5above (median -0.6)
Income of households moving in7County figure$56,59920% below
Income of households moving out7County figure$55,68921% below
02

What it costs to live here

Property tax rate is 0.5%, 42% below the median place.

Highland Acres18.6%
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
$63,320
a year, at the 30% line
Rent to income
18.6%
9% below the median place
Home price to income
3.0x
21% below the median place

Could you afford it?

The median rent would take
19%
comfortably under the 30% line
Left after rent, in US prices
$84,800
a year
Vs the typical household here
Same
as the median household

Uses the median rent in Highland Acres, $1,583 a month, and local prices for everything else (97.8 against a US average of 100). It runs in your browser and stores nothing.

Like Highland Acres, but easier on the budget

Close matches on income, rent, home value, education and age, where rent takes a clearly smaller share of income.

PlaceRent to incomeMore left a year
Blandon, PA14.6% vs 18.6%$8,700Compare
Mack, OH13.4% vs 18.6%$23,400Compare
Stokesdale, NC14.4% vs 18.6%$22,100Compare

Moving from somewhere else? Work out the salary you would need in Highland Acres.

Sponsored · exampleMoving to Highland Acres? Compare quotes from licensed movers. No partner is signed yet. Sponsored offers are always labelled and never change the data.
Property tax rate1
0.5%
42% below the median place
Renters paying 30%+1
40.0%
21% below the median place
Homeownership1
82.3%
24% above the median place
All 16 cost and housing measures
MeasureHighland AcresAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Median gross rent1$1,58316% above
Rent to income118.6%9% below
Property tax rate10.5%42% below
Home price to income13.0x21% below
Prices vs US average2Metro figure97.53% below
Fair market rent, 2 bedrooms3County figure$1,6291% above
HUD area median income4County figure$112,1004% above
Property tax paid (median)1$1,61650% below
Median home value1$306,4004% below
Home prices, 1-year change5County figure2.5%21% below
Home prices, 5-year change5County figure49.0%5% below
Homeownership182.3%24% above
Renters paying 30%+140.0%21% below
Owner costs with a mortgage1$1,7447% below
Vacant homes1County figure6.4%9% below
Median year built119720% below
03

Work and pay

Median household income is $102,356, 27% above the median place.

Median household income1
$102,356
27% above the median place
Mean commute1
22 min
13% below the median place
Works from home1
8.9%
29% below the median place
All 10 work and pay measures
MeasureHighland AcresAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Median household income1$102,35627% above
Income per person1$48,63921% above
Unemployment14.5%9% below
Average annual pay6County figure$60,8578% below
Pay growth, 1 year6County figure5.9%59% above
Jobs6County figure70,90553% below
Poverty rate1County figure10.6%1% below
Mean commute122 min13% below
Works from home18.9%29% below
Commutes by transit1County figure1.0%21% above
04

Who lives here

High school or higher is 97.2%, 5% above the median place.

High school or higher1
97.2%
5% above the median place
Household size1
3.0
20% above the median place
Median age1
45.1
16% above the median place

More about who lives here, against the typical place

Born abroad3.0% −66%
Homes with broadband93.7% +2%
Bachelor's or higher37.3% +16%
All 8 people measures
MeasureHighland AcresAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Population13,7526646th largest
Median age145.116% above
Bachelor's or higher137.3%16% above
High school or higher197.2%5% above
Household size13.020% above
Born abroad13.0%66% below
No health insurance1County figure6.6%3% above
Homes with broadband193.7%2% above
05

Life in Highland Acres

155 sites are on the National Register of Historic Places, 2 of them National Historic Landmarks.

Out the door, against the typical place

Parks per 10k residents5.3 −48%
Playgrounds per 10k5.3 −43%
Grocery stores per 10k0.0 −100%
Restaurants, cafes and bars per 10k8.0 −28%
Libraries per 10k0.0 −100%
Named paths and bike trails0 km −100%
Bus and rail stops per sq mi0.0 −100%

Mapped by volunteers in OpenStreetMap inside the city limits (Census boundaries), so coverage is fuller in some places than others. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.

Businesses per 10,000 residents (county figures)

Restaurants and bars18.1 −13%
Shops35.7 +18%
Arts, recreation and fitness7.9 +93%
Doctors' offices and clinics18.2 −10%
Child care centers3.4 +48%

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

Arts, recreation and fitness per 10k8
7.9
93% above the median place
Child care centers per 10k8
3.4
48% above the median place
Public school students11
31,256
above the median place (median 4,897)
All 16 schools and local life measures
MeasureHighland AcresAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Public schools11County figure54above (median 9)
Public school students11County figure31,256above (median 4,897)
Students per teacher11County figure16.89% above
Restaurants and bars per 10k8County figure18.113% below
Shops per 10k8County figure35.718% above
Arts, recreation and fitness per 10k8County figure7.993% above
Doctors' offices and clinics per 10k8County figure18.210% below
Child care centers per 10k8County figure3.448% above
Parks per 10k95.348% below
Playgrounds per 10k95.343% below
Grocery stores per 10k90.0below (median 2.1)
Restaurants, cafes and bars per 10k98.028% below
Libraries per 10k90.0below (median 0.9)
Named paths and bike trails90.0below (median 2.0)
Transit stops per sq mi90.0below (median 0.2)
National Register listings10County figure155above (median 13)
06

Safety, weather and risk

Hurricane risk is 91.3, 29% above 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 Highland Acres. Larger places are fetched first.

Hurricane risk13
91.3
29% above the median place
Tornado risk13
68.6
16% below the median place
Natural hazard risk13
84.5
9% below the median place
All 11 weather and risk measures
MeasureHighland AcresAmong 6,645 placesVs median
July average high12County figure87°F0% above
January average low12County figure26°F4% above
Average temperature12County figure56°F2% above
Annual precipitation12County figure45.2 in3% above
Natural hazard risk13County figure84.59% below
Hurricane risk13County figure91.329% above
Tornado risk13County figure68.616% below
Wildfire risk13County figure64.96% above
Heat wave risk13County figure87.63% below
Median air quality index14County figure415% below
Good air days14County figure75.6%10% above
08

Highland Acres in 2030: where the trends point

If recent trends hold, the median rent will take about 19% of the median income in 2030, up from 19% 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$1,583/mo (2024)$2,060/mo$1,690 to $2,520/mo+4.5%
Median household income$102,356 (2024)$128,500$109,000 to $152,500+3.9%
Median home value$306,400 (2024)$424,000$308,000 to $584,000+5.6%

The median home would be worth 3.3 years of the median income in 2030, against 3.0 now.

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

09

Places like Highland Acres

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

PlaceRentIncome
Newington, CT$1,524$102,884Compare
Colonie, NY$1,570$103,983Compare
Matteson, IL$1,580$95,457Compare
Tinley Park, IL$1,495$105,189Compare
Tinley Park, ILMatteson, ILColonie, NYNewington, CTHighland Acres, DEHighland AcresColonieMattesonTinley ParkHighland AcresColonieMattesonTinley Park

Common questions

Is Highland Acres a good place to live?

It depends on what you need, so here is what the numbers say. Between the 2019 and 2024 surveys, rent rose 10.3% a year while household income rose 3.2%, so rent outran pay by more than in 94% of the 2,476 places under 10,000 people we track. It is the 3rd-highest of 21 Delaware places. Households average 3.00 people, larger than in 88% of places its size. It is the highest of 21 Delaware places. See how it ranks with your own weights.

Is Highland Acres expensive to live in?

The median rent takes 18.6% of the median household income, against 20.4% in the typical place we track. Housing is a lighter load here than usual. The median home is valued at $306,400.

What salary do you need to live in Highland Acres?

To rent the median home without spending more than 30% of income on rent, a household needs about $63,320 a year. Work it out from your current city.

What places are similar to Highland Acres?

On income, rent, home value, education and age, the closest matches are Newington, CT, Colonie, NY, Matteson, IL and Tinley Park, IL.

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. OpenStreetMap · © OpenStreetMap contributors, available under the Open Database License (ODbL) · Map data as of 2026-11
  10. National Register of Historic Places · National Park Service · Listings through 2026-05-22
  11. Common Core of Data · National Center for Education Statistics · 2024 release
  12. 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
  13. National Risk Index · Federal Emergency Management Agency · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14NRI data and maps
  14. 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 Highland Acres with places of a similar size, using only figures measured for Highland Acres itself; county and metro figures never count. Survey figures are estimates with margins of error. Formulas and definitions: methodology. API: /api/v1/places/highland-acres-delaware

Citytistics. “Highland Acres, Delaware.” Data as of 2026-11-14. https://www.citytistics.com/city/highland-acres-delaware/

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