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.
When you are in Seldovia, you'll notice that it is more blue-collar than most other communities in America. 43.59% of Seldovia’s employed work in blue-collar jobs, while America averages only 27.7% that do. 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%).
One interesting thing about the economy is that relatively large numbers of people worked from their home: 21.43% 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.
Another notable thing is that Seldovia is a major vacation destination. Much of the city’s population is seasonal: many people own second homes and only live there part-time, during the vacation season. The effect on the local economy is that many of the businesses are dependent on tourist dollars, and may operate only during the high season. As the vacation season ends, Seldovia’s population drops significantly, such that year-round residents will notice that the city is a much quieter place to live.
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, Seldovia is worth considering.
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.
One of the benefits of Seldovia is that there is very little traffic. The average commute to work is 7.50 minutes, which is substantially less than the national average. Not only does this mean that the drive to work is less aggravating, but noise and pollution levels are lower as a result.
Being a small city, Seldovia does not have a public transit system used by locals to get to and from work.
The percentage of people in Seldovia who are college-educated is somewhat higher than the average US community of 21.84%: 27.01% of adults in Seldovia 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.
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.
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 1 people per square mile living here, this neighborhood is less crowded than 99.4% 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, vacant homes and apartments are a significant characteristic of this neighborhood. In fact, with 59.9% of the residential real estate vacant, the neighborhood claims the distinction of having a higher vacancy rate than 99.4% of the neighborhoods in America. This can either be because much of the property is seasonally occupied, like in many vacation areas, or that much of the real estate is more permanently abandoned.
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.
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 99.4% of all American neighborhoods. This is truly a unique cultural characteristic of this neighborhood.
More people in choose to walk to work each day (21.2%) than almost any neighborhood in America. If you are attracted to the idea of being able to walk to work, this neighborhood could be a good choice.
Also, would you like to be able to ride your bike to work? If you are attracted to the idea of getting a little exercise of the two-wheeled type while reducing your carbon footprint, bicycling to work might be the answer. But which neighborhood you live in can make this either impossible, or alternatively, a great and realistic option. NeighborhoodScout's analysis revealed that the neighborhood is a fantastic option for bicycle commuters, as 4.0% of commuters here do ride their bikes to and from work on a daily basis. This is a higher amount than we found in 97.4% of the neighborhoods in America.
American households most often have a car, and regularly they have two or three. But households in the neighborhood buck this trend. 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.
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, 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
Culture is shared learned behavior. We learn it from our parents, their parents, our houses of worship, and much of our culture – our learned behavior – comes from our ancestors. That is why ancestry and ethnicity can be so interesting and important to understand: places with concentrations of people of one or more ancestries often express those shared learned behaviors and this gives each neighborhood its own culture. Even different neighborhoods in the same city can have drastically different cultures.
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.
