Old Harbor is a tiny coastal city (i.e. on the ocean, a bay, or inlet) located in the state of Alaska. With a population of 210 people and just one neighborhood, Old Harbor is the 63rd largest community in Alaska.
Old Harbor real estate is some of the most expensive in Alaska, although Old Harbor house values don't compare to the most expensive real estate in the U.S.
When you are in Old Harbor, you'll notice that it is more blue-collar than most other communities in America. 39.29% of Old Harbor’s employed work in blue-collar jobs, while America averages only 27.7% that do. Overall, Old Harbor is a city of sales and office workers, service providers, and transportation and shipping workers. There are especially a lot of people living in Old Harbor who work in office and administrative support (28.57%), maintenance occupations (12.50%), and farm management occupations (8.93%).
One interesting thing about the economy is that relatively large numbers of people worked from their home: 9.26% of the workforce. While this number may seem small overall, as a fraction of the total workforce this is high compared to the rest of the county. These workers are often telecommuters who work in knowledge-based, white-collar professions. For example, Silicon Valley has large numbers of people who telecommute. Other at-home workers may be self-employed people who operate small businesses out of their homes.
The overall crime rate in Old Harbor is one of the lowest in the US. This makes it one of the safer places to live in the country in terms of crime.
Residents will find that the city is relatively quiet. This is because it is not over-populated, and it has fewer college students, renters, and young children - all of whom can be noisy at times. So, if you're looking for a relatively peaceful place to live, Old Harbor is worth considering.
Old Harbor is also nautical, which means that parts of it are somewhat historic and touch the ocean or tidal bodies of water, such as inlets and bays. Such areas are often places that visitors and locals go for waterfront activities or taking in the scenery.
Residents of the city have the good fortune of having one of the shortest daily commutes compared to the rest of the country. On average, they spend only 7.50 minutes getting to work every day.
As is often the case in a small city, Old Harbor doesn't have a public transportation system that people use for their commute.
In Old Harbor, just 7.61% of people over 25 hold a college degree, which is very low compared to the rest of the nation, whereas the average among all cities is 21.84%.
The per capita income in Old Harbor in 2018 was $21,641, which is low income relative to Alaska and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $86,564 for a family of four. However, Old Harbor contains both very wealthy and poor people as well. Old Harbor also has one of the higher rates of people living in poverty in the nation, with 44.52% of its population below the federal poverty line.
Old Harbor is an extremely ethnically-diverse city. The people who call Old Harbor home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Old Harbor residents report their race to be Native American, followed by White. Important ancestries of people in Old Harbor include German, Norwegian, Danish, English, and Scots-Irish.
The most common language spoken in Old Harbor is English. Other important languages spoken here include Pacific Island languages and Polish.
The way a neighborhood looks and feels when you walk or drive around it, from its setting, its buildings, and its flavor, can make all the difference. This neighborhood has some really cool things about the way it looks and feels as revealed by NeighborhoodScout's exclusive research. This might include anything from the housing stock to the types of households living here to how people get around.
Real Estate
Unpopulated, and rural, the neighborhood is one of the least crowded neighborhoods in all of America. If you like open space, no traffic, and lots of room, this neighborhood may be just what you are looking for. According to NeighborhoodScout's leading research, this neighborhood is less densely populated than 99.6% of the neighborhoods in America. Do you like a coastal setting? If so, this neighborhood may be to your liking. The neighborhood is on the ocean, a bay, or inlet. Often such coastal places have amenities and recreational activities on the waterfront that are attractive to residents and visitors alike. In addition to being coastal, is a very nautical neighborhood, meaning that it is somewhat historic, walkable, densely populated and on the water. This gives the neighborhood a very nautical feel, with some seaside and shipping feel, which some may really enjoy the sights and sounds of. One of the notable things about is that it is one of the quietest neighborhoods in America, according to NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis and quantitative rating of quietness. When you are here, you will find it to be very quiet. If quiet and peaceful are your cup of tea, you may have found a great place for you.
In addition, despite all of the residential real estate here in the neighborhood, NeighborhoodScout has discovered that much of it is vacant. In resort or second-home vacation areas, this naturally occurs because homes and apartments are seasonally occupied, and empty for a portion of the year. In non-vacation or resort areas, however, this can be an indicator of property abandonment or a weak real estate market. The vacancy rate here is 47.4%, which is higher than 98.5% of all U.S. neighborhoods.
Occupations
The government often provides some of the more stable jobs in the economy. From local, to state, to federal government workers, the government can also be a major employer. What NeighborhoodScout's analysis revealed, is that the neighborhood in particular stands out when compared nationally for the proportion of its working residents who are employed by the government. At 20.8% of its workforce, this neighborhood has a greater concentration of government workers than 99.1% of U.S. neighborhoods.
Furthermore, each year, fewer and fewer Americans make their living as farmers, foresters, or fishers. But the neighborhood truly stands out among U.S. neighborhoods. According to exclusive NeighborhoodScout analysis, this neighborhood has a greater proportion of farmers, foresters, or fishers than 98.4% of all American neighborhoods. This is truly a unique cultural characteristic of this neighborhood.
Modes of Transportation
Our research shows that more people carpool to work here in the (24.3%) than in 96.7% of the neighborhoods in America.
People
If you're looking for a great spot to raise a family, then look no further than the neighborhood. NeighborhoodScout's analysis found that the combination of good quality public schools, above-average safety from crime, and a high rate of home ownership in predominantly single-family homes, help make this neighborhood among the top 10.2% of family-friendly neighborhoods across the state of Alaska. In addition, there are a high proportion of other families with school-aged children living here, making it easy for parents and their children to socialize and develop a sense of community support. In addition, families here highly value education, as is reflected by the strength of the local schools, in part due to the educational attainment of the parents here, who vote in support of the public schools.
Diversity
Did you know that the neighborhood has more Danish and Native American ancestry people living in it than nearly any neighborhood in America? It's true! In fact, 8.5% of this neighborhood's residents have Danish ancestry and 24.8% have Native American ancestry.
is also pretty special linguistically. Significantly, 5.8% of its residents five years old and above primarily speak Native American languages at home. While this may seem like a small percentage, it is higher than 99.7% of the neighborhoods in America.
There are two complementary measures for understanding the income of a neighborhood's residents: the average and the extremes. While a neighborhood may be relatively wealthy overall, it is equally important to understand the rate of people - particularly children - who are living at or below the federal poverty line, which is extremely low income. Some neighborhoods with a lower average income may actually have a lower childhood poverty rate than another with a higher average income, and this helps us understand the conditions and character of a neighborhood.
The neighbors in the neighborhood in Old Harbor are upper-middle income, making it an above average income neighborhood. NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis reveals that this neighborhood has a higher income than 61.3% of the neighborhoods in America. With 17.4% of the children here below the federal poverty line, this neighborhood has a higher rate of childhood poverty than 64.5% of U.S. neighborhoods.
What we choose to do for a living reflects who we are. Each neighborhood has a different mix of occupations represented, and together these tell you about the neighborhood and help you understand if this neighborhood may fit your lifestyle.
In the neighborhood, 42.1% of the working population is employed in executive, management, and professional occupations. The second most important occupational group in this neighborhood is government jobs, whether they are in local, state, or federal positions, with 20.8% of the residents employed. Other residents here are employed in manufacturing and laborer occupations (19.2%), and 19.1% in sales and service jobs, from major sales accounts, to working in fast food restaurants.
Languages
The languages spoken by people in this neighborhood are diverse. These are tabulated as the languages people preferentially speak when they are at home with their families. The most common language spoken in the neighborhood is English, spoken by 92.3% of households. Other important languages spoken here include Native American languages, Russian and Spanish.
Ethnicity / Ancestry
Boston's Beacon Hill blue-blood streets, Brooklyn's Orthodox Jewish enclaves, Los Angeles' Persian neighborhoods. Each has its own culture derived primarily from the ancestries and culture of the residents who call these neighborhoods home. Likewise, each neighborhood in America has its own culture – some more unique than others – based on lifestyle, occupations, the types of households – and importantly – on the ethnicities and ancestries of the people who live in the neighborhood. Understanding where people came from, who their grandparents or great-grandparents were, can help you understand how a neighborhood is today.
In the neighborhood in Old Harbor, AK, residents most commonly identify their ethnicity or ancestry as Native American (24.8%). There are also a number of people of German ancestry (9.3%), and residents who report Danish roots (8.5%), and some of the residents are also of Swedish ancestry (7.7%), along with some Norwegian ancestry residents (5.4%), among others.
How you get to work – car, bus, train or other means – and how much of your day it takes to do so is a large quality of life and financial issue. Especially with gasoline prices rising and expected to continue doing so, the length and means of one's commute can be a financial burden. Some neighborhoods are physically located so that many residents have to drive in their own car, others are set up so many walk to work, or can take a train, bus, or bike. The greatest number of commuters in neighborhood spend under 15 minutes commuting one-way to work (52.7% of working residents), one of the shortest commutes across America.
Here most residents (48.4%) drive alone in a private automobile to get to work. In addition, quite a number also carpool with coworkers, friends, or neighbors to get to work (24.3%) and 7.9% of residents also hop out the door and walk to work for their daily commute. In a neighborhood like this, as in most of the nation, many residents find owning a car useful for getting to work.
