ZIP Code 80438 — Empire town, CO Demographics & Data

ZIP code 80438 covers Empire, CO in Clear Creek County with a population of about 720.

At a glance, the area shows median age of 44.8 versus a U.S. median of about 38.9.

It sits in telephone area codes 303, 720, 983; U.S. House district CO-2; the DENVER media market.

Median household income in ZIP 80438 is about $63,092 — about 16% below the U.S. median ($75,149).

On socioeconomic markers, US5 shows a poverty rate of 9.9%; unemployment rate near 3.1%; 26.2% of adults with a bachelor’s degree or higher (about 7.5 points below the national share (33.7%)).

Labor and commute patterns include leading industry context around Retail trade, Manufacturing, and Food services; about 4.2% of workers reporting work-from-home (about 11.0 points below the U.S. share (15.2%)); a mean commute of about 180.0 minutes (U.S. average near 26.8).

Median home value is about $299,300 — about 14% below the U.S. median home value ($348,079).

Housing tenure and rents show median gross rent around $1,212 (about 4% above the U.S. median rent ($1,163)), and owner-occupancy near 62.8% (about 2.6 points below the national owner-occupancy rate (65.4%)).

To comfortably buy a median-priced home in ZIP 80438 in Empire, CO, a household would need roughly $82,000 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 $1,923. That is about 30% above the local median household income ($63,092), so the median earner would likely stretch or need a larger down payment. 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 Empire town, CO as Relatively Low (composite score 46.7), which is near the middle of the national distribution. The strongest component scores on US5 are wildfire (94.0) and flood (40.0). 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 Empire town, CO show little to no average snow and around 18.3 inches of annual precipitation.

IRS migration statistics show a net inflow of about 33 for ZIP 80438 (Empire town, CO) 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.