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Fern AcresHI

A town of 1,480.

Population

1,480

Census survey, 2020–24

Is Fern Acres a good place to live?

Fern Acres’ weakest subject grade is a D− for hazard risk. 27% of residents live below the poverty line in Fern Acres, above both the Hawaii town median (9.7%) and the median of U.S. towns (9.6%). Only 2 of Hawaii’s 125 towns score lower on hazard risk. The median household income is $40K, and 27% of residents live below the poverty line. 0.3% of the land in Fern Acres is conserved, against 12% in Hawaii’s towns and 4.3% across U.S. towns. Only 11 of Hawaii’s 125 towns score lower on the outdoors. Fern Acres has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.

WeakestD⁻Hazard risk D⁻Jobs & income C⁻Health

A growing town

Fern Acres has grown 31% from 2010 to 2020

1,504 counted in 2010 and 1,965 in 2020.

1,5042010

1,9652020

U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts

How Fern Acres grades

Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Hawaii), ordered by how far Fern Acres is from typical.

How grading works

Hazard riskFEMA risk higher than 100% of U.S. communities; inland flooding tops the listD⁻Open →Jobs & incomeD⁻Open →HealthLess healthy than 78% of U.S. towns; Hilo Benioff Medical Center 14.6 miles awayC⁻Open →Cost of livingTypical home $320K, 4.1 years of the Hilo area’s $79K median household incomeCOpen →WalkabilityEPA walkability 4.8 of 20; 1.6% of households have no car; 2.9% of workers walk, bike or ride transitCOpen →

Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.

Outdoors2 miles of trails; 0% conserved landC⁻Open →HistoryDOpen →

Described, not graded Taste, not quality: snow or an older crowd is neither good nor bad.

ClimateMild winters, 78° summer afternoons–Open →Who lives hereMedian age 57.0; 24% of adults have a four-year degree–Open →

How TownRatings grades towns →

Nearby attractions

Mauna Kea and 15 more within 40 miles

Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Fern Acres. Close and well known come first.

All 28 attractions →

Big draw33 mi MountainMauna Kea

Big draw15 mi MountainKīlauea

Big draw34 mi MountainMauna Loa

8 mi National ParkHawai'i Volcanoes National Park1.9M visitors a year

3 mi CaveKazumura Cave

15 mi WaterfallRainbow Falls

Sources: National Park Service · ski areas © OpenSkiMap / OpenStreetMap contributors · Wikidata · Wikipedia readership · photos via Wikimedia Commons

Photo credits

Mauna Kea: Unknown, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Kīlauea: Hawaii Land Cover Analysis project, NOAA Coastal Services Center, Public domain · Mauna Loa: Gordon Joly, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park: Jos-uit-boston at Dutch Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Kazumura Cave: Dave Bunnell / Under Earth Images, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Rainbow Falls: Kyle Hawton, CC BY-SA 3.0

Getting set up

Moving to Fern Acres: who provides what

Fern Acres is unincorporated, so Hawaii County and regional agencies provide most services.

PowerHawaii Electric Light Co45.8¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA

Internet3 providers88% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC

Trash & county servicesHawaii CountyHawaii County provides services here

SchoolsHawaii Department of EducationWhich school depends on your addressNCES

Register to voteOnlineIn Hawaii you can register online up to and including Election Day, in person up to and including Election Day, or by mail (postmarked 10 days before).vote.gov

Who runs elections hereHawaii County ClerkHawaii County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Aug 2015

ZIP code9677196771 100%Census 2020

EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.

The data

Ordered by what stands out in Fern Acres.

Natural hazardsHazard risk grade D⁻

Fern Acres faces a very high natural-hazard risk, led by inland flooding

Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 100% of U.S. communities.

100risk score of 100

FEMA risk score

Inland floodingEarthquakesVolcanic activity

Full pageFern Acres’ hazards pageOpen the page

What it facesVery high risk Flood claims0 paid flood claims · No paid flood claims on record Past disasters29 disaster declarations · Declared for the county Get ready5.6 events a year, on average · Ready for inland flooding

FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA

HealthC⁻

Fern Acres stands out in Hawaii and nationally, with more of its adults who report frequent physical distress

18% of adults report frequent physical distress in Fern Acres. Among 94 Hawaii towns, just 5 have a higher share of adults who say their health is fair or poor than Fern Acres. 19% of adults report frequent mental distress in Fern Acres.

22%healthier than U.S. townsC⁻Health Grade

	Fern Acres	Hawaii towns	U.S. towns
Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES)	18%	13%	14%
Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES)	21%	12%	14%
Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES)	26%	18%	19%
Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES)	19%	16%	17%

32 measures vs. Hawaii

1 better10 too close to call21 worse

What stands out	Fern Acres	HI
Fewer adults sleeping under 7 hours	40.7%	45.7%
More adults facing a utility shut-off	11.4%	5.8%

Hilo Benioff Medical Center

14.6 mi away · emergency room

3 of 3

care shortages: primary care, dental, mental health

Full pageFern Acres’ health reportOpen the page

Everyday habitsMore smokers Hospitals & doctors nearby14.6 miles to an ER · Hilo Benioff Medical Center How adults are doingMore adults in frequent physical distress Every CDC estimateBetter than HI on 1 of 32

CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA

Work & commuteJobs & income grade D⁻

With 0.3 jobs for every working resident, most of Fern Acres’ workers commute out

Most working residents leave Fern Acres for work: only 1% work in town. Fern Acres’ average trip to work is 32 minutes. Jobs based in Fern Acres grew to 43 in 2023, 22 more than in 2013.

1%work in town

	Fern Acres	Hawaii towns	U.S. towns
Average trip to work	32 minutes	28 minutes	25 minutes
Working residents who work in town	0.7%	3.7%	8%

Where working residents work

In Fern Acres1%

Hilo35%

Urban Honolulu13%

Keaau7%

Kailua5%

15 mi

median commute distance

jobs based in Fern Acres

A commuter town

jobs vs. working residents

Walkability grade: more walkable than 35% of U.S. towns

Full pageFern Acres’ work & commute pageOpen the page

The jobs here43 jobs based here · A commuter town Where people work1% work in Fern Acres Commute times32 minutes · The average commute How far they goHalf commute less than 15 miles

Census LEHD 2023 · ACS

Climate

In Fern Acres, expect mild winters and pleasant summers

Fern Acres has warm winters and pleasant summers, with plenty of rain. The July high in Fern Acres is 77°F.

78°summer high

Typical low → high °F

Winter56–73°

Spring58–74°

Summer61–77°

Fall60–77°

78°

typical summer high

Full pageFern Acres’ climate pageOpen the page

A year of weatherJuly highs 77°, January lows 56°Rain & snow229″ of rain a year · Snow is almost unheard of Heating & coolingMostly a cooling bill Then and nowThen and now

NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020

OutdoorsC⁻

For the outdoors, Fern Acres earns a C−

2.1 miles of trail in 0 parks and preserves.

0.3%conserved

0.3%

conserved · 13 of 4,352 acres

2.1 mi

of trails · 0.3 per sq mi

Full pageFern Acres’ outdoors pageOpen the page

Trail map2.1 miles of trail, mapped Pick a walkPick a walk Conserved land0.3% conserved · 13 acres protected Questions“Where can I hike in Fern Acres?”

HousingCost of living grade C

The median home in Fern Acres sells for about $412K

84% of Fern Acres households own their home.

$412Kmedian sale price

	Fern Acres	Hawaii towns	U.S. towns
Households that own their home	84%	71%	73%
Median rent	$1,375 a month	$2,015 a month	$1,185 a month

homes sold in May

Full pageFern Acres’ housing & cost-of-living pageOpen the page

Prices over the yearsPrices over the years Years of income to buyA typical home costs 10.2 years of income Rents$1,375 a month · Median rent Vs. the neighborsBehind its 3 graded neighbors

Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center

Keep exploring

Everything we know about Fern Acres

15pages on Fern Acres

The big questions

HealthC⁻Better than HI on 1 of 32 CDC measures Cost of livingCWork & commuteD⁻$40K median household income · 43 jobs here Natural hazardsD⁻FEMA risk higher than 100% of U.S. communities · inland flooding

Out and about

OutdoorsC⁻2 mi of trails · 0% conserved land PlacesAttractions28 nearby · Kazumura Cave 3 mi LibraryMountain View Public and School Library CollegesUniversity of Hawaii at Hilo is 13.3 mi away

The story

Climate78° summer highs

Day to day

NewsWeatherHandbookTown SquareNeighbors

After high school

Colleges nearby

2 within 15 miles of the center of Fern Acres

University of Hawaii at HiloUniversity or college · Public · Hilo13.3 mi$7,838 in-state tuition Hawaii Community CollegeCommunity college · Public · Hilo13.6 mi$3,204 in-state tuition

About 4 of every 100 Fern Acres residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Hawaii.

Prices by family income, graduation and earnings →

Small town

1,480 people, and everyone knows the way

In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.

Mountain ViewEden RocHawaiian AcresFern Acres

About Fern Acres

Census-designated place in Hawaii, United States

Fern Acres is a census-designated place (CDP) in Hawaiʻi County, Hawaiʻi, United States, located in the District of Puna. As of the 2020 census, Fern Acres had a population of 1,965.

From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)

Area: 6.8 sq mi
Elevation: 1,532 ft
Area code: 808

Questions about Fern Acres

Short answers, built from the data on this page.

Is Fern Acres, HI expensive?

The typical home is worth about $320,000, 62% below the Hawaii typical home. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C.

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