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.
Overall, Old Harbor’s crime rate is one of the lowest in the nation, which makes a great place to live if safety is an important concern.
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. Quite often, nautical areas such as these attract visitors and locals who come to enjoy the scenery and various waterfront activities.
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.
The citizens of Old Harbor have a very low rate of college education: just 7.61% of people over 25 have a bachelor's degree or advanced degree, compared to a national average of 21.84% for all cities.
The per capita income in Old Harbor in 2022 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.
When you see a neighborhood for the first time, the most important thing is often the way it looks, like its homes and its setting. Some places look the same, but they only reveal their true character after living in them for a while because they contain a unique mix of occupational or cultural groups. This neighborhood is very unique in some important ways, according to NeighborhoodScout's exclusive exploration and analysis.
Real Estate
This neighborhood has wide open spaces, few people, and lots of space to stretch out. If you like locations that fit that description, you may like this neighborhood. Based on NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis, with only 0 people per square mile living here, this neighborhood is less crowded than 99.6% of America. is a neighborhood that is on the ocean, a bay, or inlet. Many times, such places have amenities that bring locals and visitors to the waterfront for recreational activities or to check out the scenery. In some densely populated areas that are less financially well-off, the neighborhood waterfront can be relatively industrial and less open to recreation. 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 neighborhood has a greater proportion of government workers living in it than 99.1% of the neighborhoods in America, according to NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis. This is a unique feature of this neighborhood, and one that shapes its character.
Furthermore, it used to be that most Americans lived on the farm, or otherwise made their living from the land, the forests, or the sea. With global trade and an economy increasingly based on providing services to one another, fewer people farm, fish or harvest timber now than at any time in American history. But according to NeighborhoodScout's leading analysis, the neighborhood stands apart from most American neighborhood due to the proportion of its residents still working in these fields. With 7.6% of the workforce so employed, this neighborhood has a greater concentration of such workers than 98.4% of U.S. neighborhoods.
Modes of Transportation
In the neighborhood, carpooling is still a popular way to get to and from work. NeighborhoodScout's analysis reveals that 24.3% of commuters carpool here, which is more than in 96.7% of all U.S. neighborhoods.
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 11.9% 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.
A neighborhood is far different if it is dominated by enlisted military personnel rather than people who earn their living by farming. It is also different if most of the neighbors are clerical support or managers. What is wonderful is the sheer diversity of neighborhoods, allowing you to find the type that fits your lifestyle and aspirations.
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
Culture is the shared learned behavior of peoples. Undeniably, different ethnicities and ancestries have different cultural traditions, and as a result, neighborhoods with concentrations of residents of one or another ethnicities or ancestries will express those cultures. It is what makes the North End in Boston so fun to visit for the Italian restaurants, bakeries, culture, and charm, and similarly, why people enjoy visiting Chinatown in San Francisco.
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.
Even if your neighborhood is walkable, you may still have to drive to your place of work. Some neighborhoods are located where many can get to work in just a few minutes, while others are located such that most residents have a long and arduous commute. 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.
