Gustavus - Hoonah is a very small coastal town (i.e. on the ocean, a bay, or inlet) located in the state of Alaska. With a population of 2,415 people and just one neighborhood, Gustavus - Hoonah is the 31st largest community in Alaska.
Unlike some towns where white-collar or blue-collar occupations dominate the local economy, Gustavus - Hoonah is neither predominantly one nor the other. Instead, it has a mixed workforce of both white- and blue-collar jobs. Overall, Gustavus - Hoonah is a town of sales and office workers, professionals, and managers. There are especially a lot of people living in Gustavus - Hoonah who work in management occupations (15.05%), office and administrative support (13.33%), and sales jobs (10.48%).
Another notable thing is that Gustavus - Hoonah is an extremely popular vacation destination. A significant portion of the population is seasonal. During the vacation season, the town 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 town.
It is a fairly quiet town because there are relatively few of those groups of people who have a tendency to be noisy. (Children, for example, often can't help themselves from being noisy, and being parents ourselves, we know!) Gustavus - Hoonah has relatively few families with children living at home, and is quieter because of it. Renters and college students, for their own reasons, can also be noisy. Gustavus - Hoonah has few renters and college students. But the biggest reason it is quieter in Gustavus - Hoonah than in most places in America, is that there are just simply fewer people living here. If you think trees make good neighbors, Gustavus - Hoonah may be for you.
Gustavus - Hoonah 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.
One of the benefits of Gustavus - Hoonah is that there is very little traffic. The average commute to work is 14.57 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.
The citizens of Gustavus - Hoonah are slightly better educated than the national average of 21.84% for all cities and towns, with 23.30% of adults in Gustavus - Hoonah having a bachelor's degree or advanced degree.
The per capita income in Gustavus - Hoonah in 2022 was $38,180, which is middle income relative to Alaska, and upper middle income relative to the rest of the US. This equates to an annual income of $152,720 for a family of four. However, Gustavus - Hoonah contains both very wealthy and poor people as well.
Gustavus - Hoonah is an extremely ethnically-diverse town. The people who call Gustavus - Hoonah home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Gustavus - Hoonah residents report their race to be White, followed by Native American. Gustavus - Hoonah also has a sizeable Hispanic population (people of Hispanic origin can be of any race). People of Hispanic or Latino origin account for 10.81% of the town’s residents. Important ancestries of people in Gustavus - Hoonah include German, Irish, English, Norwegian, and European.
The most common language spoken in Gustavus - Hoonah is English. Other important languages spoken here include Native American languages and Spanish.
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.
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 47.0%, which is higher than 98.5% of all 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 41.5% of residents here. This is a higher proportion of walking commuters than we found in 99.7% of American neighborhoods. Get ready to put on your walking shoes if you move here!
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. 74.0% 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 99.1% of U.S. neighborhoods. Less time commuting means more time for other things in life.
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 17.4% of its workforce, this neighborhood has a greater concentration of government workers than 98.3% of U.S. neighborhoods.
If you're planning where to retire, the neighborhood in Gustavus - Hoonah is a great option to consider. According to NeighborhoodScout's exclusive retirement dream area analysis, it's peaceful and quiet, has above average safety ratings compared to other neighborhoods in AK, offers a wide range of housing options, and has already attracted an enviable mix of college educated seniors. This neighborhood ranks as better for retirement living than 88.1% of the neighborhoods in Alaska. If you are considering retiring to Alaska, this is a good neighborhood to look at.
Did you know that the neighborhood has more Native American and Austrian ancestry people living in it than nearly any neighborhood in America? It's true! In fact, 24.9% of this neighborhood's residents have Native American ancestry and 1.8% have Austrian ancestry.
is also pretty special linguistically. Significantly, 4.8% 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 99.6% 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 Gustavus - Hoonah are lower-middle income, making it a below average income neighborhood. NeighborhoodScout's research shows that this neighborhood has an income lower than 66.5% of U.S. neighborhoods. In addition, 8.8% of the children seventeen and under living in this neighborhood are living below the federal poverty line, which is a lower rate of childhood poverty than is found in 53.0% of America'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, 33.8% of the working population is employed in executive, management, and professional occupations. The second most important occupational group in this neighborhood is sales and service jobs, from major sales accounts, to working in fast food restaurants, with 24.6% of the residents employed. Other residents here are employed in manufacturing and laborer occupations (24.2%), and 17.4% in government jobs, whether they are in local, state, or federal positions.
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 84.7% of households. Other important languages spoken here include Native American languages 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 Gustavus - Hoonah, AK, residents most commonly identify their ethnicity or ancestry as Native American (24.9%). There are also a number of people of German ancestry (14.5%), and residents who report Irish roots (9.0%), and some of the residents are also of English ancestry (7.7%), along with some Mexican ancestry residents (7.0%), 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 (74.0% of working residents), one of the shortest commutes across America.
Here most residents (41.5%) hop out the door and walk to work to get to work. In addition, quite a number also drive alone in a private automobile to get to work (39.6%) and 10.9% of residents also carpool with coworkers, friends, or neighbors for their daily commute. This is a special neighborhood for the number of people who walk to work. Combining exercise, low cost, and reduced pollution, plus the chance to see your neighbors, walking to work is fairly uncommon in America but likely to increase as people try to reduce their dependence on automobiles, and this neighborhood offers that opportunity today.
