Allentown, PA (Muhlenberg College / West Park)

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 Muhlenberg College / West Park neighborhood in Allentown are low income, making it among the lowest income neighborhoods in America. NeighborhoodScout's research shows that this neighborhood has an income lower than 93.2% of U.S. neighborhoods. With 21.9% of the children here below the federal poverty line, this neighborhood has a higher rate of childhood poverty than 72.8% 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 Muhlenberg College / West Park neighborhood, 31.5% 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 24.8% of the residents employed. Other residents here are employed in clerical, assistant, and tech support occupations (23.2%), and 20.4% in sales and service jobs, from major sales accounts, to working in fast food restaurants.

Languages

The most common language spoken in the Muhlenberg College / West Park neighborhood is English, spoken by 83.3% of households. Some people also speak Spanish (13.3%).

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 Muhlenberg College / West Park neighborhood in Allentown, PA, residents most commonly identify their ethnicity or ancestry as Dominican (9.4%). There are also a number of people of Puerto Rican ancestry (6.8%), and residents who report German roots (5.6%), and some of the residents are also of Irish ancestry (4.1%), along with some English ancestry residents (3.4%), 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 Muhlenberg College / West Park neighborhood spend between 15 and 30 minutes commuting one-way to work (49.3% of working residents), which is shorter than the time spent commuting to work for most Americans.

Here most residents (45.8%) 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 (12.9%) and 11.0% 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.