ZIP Code 24894 — War city, WV Demographics & Data

ZIP code 24894 covers War, WV in McDowell County with a population of about 260.

At a glance, the area shows median age of 33.4 versus a U.S. median of about 38.9.

It sits in telephone area codes 304, 681; U.S. House district WV-1; the BLUEFIELD - BECKLEY - OAK HILL media market.

War, WV reads as a military / base-oriented community on US5’s intent model (elevated veteran share (18.6%) and/or base-related place names). Service members and families often look up Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) rates, on-base mail (PSC / P.O. Box) addresses, and nearby ZIP demographics when relocating.

US5 shows 2026 DoD BAH locality rates for this ZIP’s Military Housing Area on this page (pay grade × with/without dependents). Treat the table as a planning reference and confirm entitlement with your finance office or the official DTMO BAH lookup.

Median household income in ZIP 24894 is about $21,964 — about 71% below the U.S. median ($75,149).

On socioeconomic markers, US5 shows a poverty rate of 65.4%; unemployment rate near 15.2%; 0.6% of adults with a bachelor’s degree or higher (about 33.1 points below the national share (33.7%)).

Labor and commute patterns include leading industry context around Construction, Mining, and Retail trade; a mean commute of about 39.0 minutes (U.S. average near 26.8).

Median home value is about $29,400 — about 92% below the U.S. median home value ($348,079).

Housing tenure and rents show owner-occupancy near 73.1% (about 7.7 points above the national owner-occupancy rate (65.4%)).

To comfortably buy a median-priced home in ZIP 24894 in War, WV, a household would need roughly $8,000 in annual income under a 20% down, 30-year loan at 6.8% (illustrative), keeping housing costs near 28% of income. Estimated monthly PITI is about $189. That sits below the local median household income ($21,964), suggesting the typical household income is closer to a workable buy-in level under these assumptions. Rates, taxes, insurance, and HOA fees vary — treat this as a planning estimate, not a lender quote.

FEMA’s National Risk Index rates natural-hazard risk for War city, WV as Relatively Low (composite score 76.7), which is elevated versus much of the country. The strongest component scores on US5 are flood (84.7) and wildfire (69.3). These scores are county-linked NRI values published for planning context — all ZIP codes in the same county share the same composite score on US5. Useful when comparing insurance and disaster exposure across areas, not a substitute for a parcel-level flood or fire determination.

Climate normals for War city, WV show little to no average snow and around 44.6 inches of annual precipitation.

IRS migration statistics show a net inflow of about 10 for ZIP 24894 (War city, WV) on US5’s published series — a signal of people/tax filers moving in relative to those leaving. Inflows often track job growth, housing demand, or lifestyle migration; treat the figure as a directional indicator rather than a precise headcount.