Seldovia is a tiny coastal city (i.e. on the ocean, a bay, or inlet) located in the state of Alaska. With a population of 248 people and just one neighborhood, Seldovia is the 62nd largest community in Alaska.
Because occupations involving physical labor dominate the local economy, Seldovia is generally considered to be a blue-collar town. 43.59% of the Seldovia workforce is employed in blue-collar occupations, compared to the national average of 27.7%. Overall, Seldovia is a city of professionals, sales and office workers, and transportation and shipping workers. There are especially a lot of people living in Seldovia who work in office and administrative support (20.51%), teaching (12.82%), and community and social services (8.97%).
Telecommuters are a relatively large percentage of the workforce: 21.43% of people work from home. While this number may seem small overall, as a fraction of the total workforce it is high relative to the nation. 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.
Another notable thing is that Seldovia is an extremely popular vacation destination. A significant portion of the population is seasonal. During the vacation season, the city experiences a large influx of people who take up residence in second homes they own in the area. As the vacation season ends, the population drops again, leaving behind a substantially quieter and smaller city.
The city is relatively quiet, having a combination of lower population density and few of those groups of people who have a tendency to be noisy. For example, Seldovia has relatively fewer families with younger children, and/or college students. Combined, this makes Seldovia a pretty quiet place to live overall. If you like quiet, you will probably enjoy it here.
Seldovia 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.
Seldovia is a small city, and as such doesn't have a public transit system that people use to get to and from their jobs every day.
The overall education level of Seldovia is somewhat higher than in the average US city of 21.84%: 27.01% of adults 25 and older in the city have at least a bachelor's degree.
The per capita income in Seldovia in 2022 was $45,263, which is upper middle income relative to Alaska and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $181,052 for a family of four. However, Seldovia contains both very wealthy and poor people as well.
Seldovia is a very ethnically-diverse city. The people who call Seldovia home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Seldovia residents report their race to be White, followed by Native American. Important ancestries of people in Seldovia include English, German, Finnish, European, and Irish.
The most common language spoken in Seldovia is English. Other important languages spoken here include German/Yiddish and African languages.
Many things matter about a neighborhood, but the first thing most people notice is the way a neighborhood looks and its particular character. For example, one might notice whether the buildings all date from a certain time period or whether shop signs are in multiple languages. This particular neighborhood in Seldovia, the neighborhood, has some outstanding things about the way it looks and its way of life that are worth highlighting.
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 99.4% 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 59.9%, which is higher than 99.4% of all U.S. neighborhoods.
Whether walking, biking, riding, or driving, the length of one's commute is an important factor for one's quality of life. The neighborhood stands out for its commute length, according to NeighborhoodScout's analysis. Residents of the neighborhood have the pleasure of having one of the shortest commutes to work of any neighborhood in America. 88.9% of the residents have a commute time from home to work (one way) of less than fifteen minutes. This is a higher proportion of residents enjoying a short trip to work than NeighborhoodScout found in 99.9% of U.S. neighborhoods. Less time commuting means more time for other things in life.
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 13.1% of the workforce so employed, this neighborhood has a greater concentration of such workers than 99.4% of U.S. neighborhoods.
In the neighborhood, walking to work is a real option for many. In fact, NeighborhoodScout's exclusive research reveals walking to and from work is the chosen way to commute for 21.2% of residents here. This is a higher proportion of walking commuters than we found in 98.4% of American neighborhoods. Get ready to put on your walking shoes if you move here!
Also, if your dream is to be able to ride your bike to work each day, look no further than this unique neighborhood. With 4.0% of residents in the neighborhood commuting on a bicycle to and from work daily, this neighborhood has more bicycle commuters than 97.4% of all neighborhoods in the U.S., according to NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis.
Most American households own a car or other vehicle. Many own two cars or perhaps three. In the United States, it is useful to have an automobile not only for commuting, but also for shopping and getting to other services one needs. But NeighborhoodScout's analysis revealed that households in the neighborhood have a highly unusual car ownership. 41.6% of the households in this neighborhood don't own a car at all. This is more carless households than NeighborhoodScout found in 98.2% of U.S. neighborhoods.
Did you know that the neighborhood has more Native American and Finnish ancestry people living in it than nearly any neighborhood in America? It's true! In fact, 32.0% of this neighborhood's residents have Native American ancestry and 2.2% have Finnish ancestry.
is also pretty special linguistically. Significantly, 16.2% 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 99.8% of the neighborhoods in America.
How wealthy a neighborhood is, from very wealthy, to middle income, to low income is very formative with regard to the personality and character of a neighborhood. Equally important is the rate of people, particularly children, who live below the federal poverty line. In some wealthy gated communities, the areas immediately surrounding can have high rates of childhood poverty, which indicates other social issues. NeighborhoodScout's analysis reveals both aspects of income and poverty for this neighborhood.
The neighbors in the neighborhood in Seldovia are middle-income, making it a moderate income neighborhood. NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis reveals that this neighborhood has a higher income than 40.3% of the neighborhoods in America. With 12.8% of the children here below the federal poverty line, this neighborhood has a higher rate of childhood poverty than 56.6% of U.S. neighborhoods.
The old saying "you are what you eat" is true. But it is also true that you are what you do for a living. The types of occupations your neighbors have shape their character, and together as a group, their collective occupations shape the culture of a place.
In the neighborhood, 35.2% of the working population is employed in executive, management, and professional occupations. The second most important occupational group in this neighborhood is manufacturing and laborer occupations, with 21.7% of the residents employed. Other residents here are employed in sales and service jobs, from major sales accounts, to working in fast food restaurants (15.9%), and 14.2% in clerical, assistant, and tech support occupations.
Languages
The most common language spoken in the neighborhood is English, spoken by 82.8% of households. Some people also speak Native American languages (16.2%).
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 Seldovia, AK, residents most commonly identify their ethnicity or ancestry as Native American (32.0%). There are also a number of people of German ancestry (6.5%), and residents who report Irish roots (5.6%), and some of the residents are also of English ancestry (4.4%), along with some Scottish ancestry residents (2.2%), 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 (88.9% of working residents), one of the shortest commutes across America.
Here most residents (49.1%) drive alone in a private automobile to get to work. In addition, quite a number also hop out the door and walk to work to get to work (21.2%) and 7.0% of residents also carpool with coworkers, friends, or neighbors 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.
