Population & age
- Total population
- 5,470
- Median age
- 40.5
El Paso County · El Paso, TX · Population 5,470
Fabens, TX (ZIP 79838) sits in El Paso County within the El Paso metro area. The page draws on 2 federal data feeds retrieved Apr 24. Top health signal: Health Insurance comes in above the national average at 37.5%. NCES lists 4 schools serving the area, 4 non-charter. 1 college or university serves the area, with median in-state tuition of $7,592. Local establishments report average pay of $34,450 per worker (Census ZBP) — below the US average. BLS QCEW reports average annual pay of $50,230 per worker, roughly 23% below the US average. FDIC counts just 1 bank branch in this ZIP (Summary of Deposits, 2024) — residents likely lean on neighboring ZIPs or online banking for most services. CDC's Social Vulnerability Index places this ZIP in the 93th percentile nationally — a highly vulnerable community profile. FEMA has issued 16 federal disaster declarations affecting this ZIP since 1974. Annual precipitation averages just 8.3" per NOAA's 1991–2020 Normals — an arid-climate ZCTA where landscaping and water-budget choices matter more than national averages suggest. 23.5% of residents under 65 lack health insurance per the 2025 County Health Rankings — a notable access gap. Fast-food restaurants outnumber grocery stores roughly 7-to-1 per capita (USDA Food Environment Atlas) — a "food swamp" pattern often linked to higher diet-related disease prevalence. Texas has no state income tax (Tax Foundation 2025). IRS migration data (2022-2023) shows a net loss of 4,530 residents (2,160 households) — the ZIP's primary county is shrinking. Both healthcare access and on-paper school density skew lighter than national norms; what shows up here is a snapshot, not a verdict — neighborhood-level texture matters at this scale. Notable: median household income $36,366, fair market rent of $1,080 for a two-bedroom, and a typical home value of $163,505, up 10.7% over the past year. Every figure on this page links to its underlying federal dataset with a retrieval date so you can audit the freshness yourself.
Studio
$740
/month
1 Bed
$920
/month
2 Bed
$1,080
/month
3 Bed
$1,490
/month
4 Bed
$1,810
/month
HUD Fair Market Rents represent the 40th percentile of standard-quality rental housing in this area. FY2026 data.
$163,505
Zillow Home Value Index (ZHVI) · as of March 2026
+10.7%
vs. March 2025
+39.7%
vs. March 2021
El Paso, TX
Metropolitan statistical area
Source: Zillow Research, ZHVI All Homes (SFR, Condo/Co-op) Time Series (zillow.com/research/data). Zillow Home Value Index (ZHVI) is copyrighted by Zillow, Inc.
New housing units permitted
2,320
Across 2,136 permitted buildings. Total construction value: $516.5M.
Single-family
2,077
90% of total units
Multifamily (2+ unit)
243
10% of total units
Single-family value
$486.6M
construction value
Multifamily value
$29.9M
construction value
Based on county-level data (2024).
Source: U.S. Census Bureau Building Permits Survey (census.gov/construction/bps). Public domain. BPS reports annual residential building permits from local permit-issuing jurisdictions, aggregated to county. A permit reflects intent to build, not a completed unit — actual construction lags by 6-24 months for multifamily projects.
Business establishments
65
Total employment
535
Annual payroll
$18.4M
Average annual pay
$34,450
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ZIP Business Patterns (census.gov). Public domain. ZBP covers establishments with paid employees; Census suppresses employment and payroll values when fewer employers operate in a ZIP than would protect their confidentiality.
Average annual pay
$50,230
Average weekly wage
$966
Total employment
333,908
Total establishments
16,825
That is roughly 23% below the US national average of $65,470 per worker.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (bls.gov/cew). Public domain. QCEW is derived from state unemployment-insurance filings and covers ~95% of US jobs. Figures are county-level totals assigned to ZIPs whose primary county matches; small-employer cells are suppressed by BLS to protect employer confidentiality.
Unemployment rate
4.2%
That is 0.2 percentage points above the US national unemployment rate of about 4.0%.
Labor force
414,118
Employed
396,846
Unemployed
17,272
Based on El Paso County, TX data (2024).
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics (bls.gov/lau). Public domain. LAUS publishes monthly and annual labor-force estimates for every US county. Figures are county-level totals assigned to ZIPs whose primary county matches.
FDIC-insured bank branches
1
Limited banking access
Only a handful of branches — residents may rely on neighboring ZIPs or online banking for most services.
Total deposits
$105.6M
across all branches in this ZIP
Distinct institutions
1
different banks operating here
Top banks by deposits in this ZIP
Based on FDIC-insured branch offices as of June 30, 2024.
Source: FDIC Summary of Deposits (fdic.gov). Annual June-30 snapshot of every FDIC-insured branch and the deposits booked there. Figures cover all institutions reporting a branch address in this ZIP.
FTA tracks transit service at the urbanized-area level. Numbers below reflect the agencies and modes serving the area that contains this ZIP, not stop-level coverage.
Service status
Available
El Paso, TX--NM
Reporting agencies
2
Largest: City of El Paso
Annual ridership
—
unlinked trips · 2024
Source: U.S. Federal Transit Administration, National Transit Database (transit.dot.gov). Public domain.
Federally Declared Disasters
16
Date Range
1974–2021
Most Recent Declaration
SEVERE WINTER STORMS
Severe Ice Storm — declared February 19, 2021 (DR-4586)
Incident period: February 11, 2021 – February 21, 2021
Top Incident Types
Individual Assistance
2
Direct help to disaster survivors
Households Program
2
Housing & temporary lodging support
Public Assistance
15
Repair of public facilities & roads
Hazard Mitigation
6
Funding to reduce future disaster risk
FEMA declares disasters at the county level; counts here include every federally declared disaster touching any county that overlaps this ZIP. Statewide declarations and pre-1964 records without county granularity are excluded. Program flags reflect which FEMA assistance categories were activated (Individual Assistance, Households, Public Assistance, Hazard Mitigation). Source: fema.gov/openfema. Public domain.
30-year averages (1991-2020) from the nearest GHCN-D weather station. Temperature and precipitation values reflect typical annual conditions, not any single year.
Avg. temperature
63.7°F
47.3° – 80.2°
Annual precipitation
8.3"
Annual snowfall
1.7"
Heating · cooling days
2,487 · 2,048
Annual base 65°F
Nearest station: TORNILLO 2 SSE, TX US, 8.4 miles from the centroid of Fabens, TX (ZIP 79838)
Source: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, 1991–2020 U.S. Climate Normals (ncei.noaa.gov). Public domain.
Median daily AQI
67
ModeratePeak AQI (2024)
431
Hazardous
Primary pollutant
Ozone
133 days as main pollutant
Days measured
366
Based on El Paso County data (2024).
Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Air Quality System (epa.gov). Public domain. Only counties with EPA AQS monitoring stations appear here (~30% of US counties); rural ZIPs whose primary county has no monitor will not show this section.
Years of potential life lost (per 100K)
8,160
That tracks the national county median of about 8,200 years per 100,000.
Premature death is the headline composite outcome CHR reports — age-adjusted, all-cause, before age 75.
Fair or poor health
28%
of adults self-report
Poor physical health days
4.7
avg per adult per month
Poor mental health days
5.9
avg per adult per month
Uninsured
23.5%
of residents under 65
Primary care MDs
50
per 100,000 residents
Preventable hospital stays
2,060
per 100K Medicare enrollees
Food environment (0-10)
6.3
10 = best access & security
Exercise access
86%
residents near a facility
Flu vaccinated
33%
of Medicare enrollees
Low birth weight (under 2,500 g) accounts for 9.0% of live births in this county — an early-life health input that downstream outcomes track against.
Based on El Paso data (2025 CHR release).
Source: County Health Rankings & Roadmaps, University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute (countyhealthrankings.org). Annual release. Underlying source datasets vary by measure (CDC BRFSS, NCHS Vital Statistics, AHA, USDA Food Environment Atlas, and others). Figures are county-level and assigned to every ZIP whose primary county matches.
Food access status
Moderate food access challenges
20.3% of El Paso County, TX residents live more than 1 mile (urban) or 10 miles (rural) from the nearest supermarket.
Grocery stores
0.11
per 1,000 residents
Supercenters & clubs
0.02
per 1,000 residents
SNAP-authorized stores
0.75
accepting food benefits
Fast-food restaurants
0.76
per 1,000 residents
Among low-income residents, 9.1% are low-access — those without a supermarket within 1 mile (urban) or 10 miles (rural).
Per-1,000 figures show how many of each store type exist in El Paso County, TX for every 1,000 residents. Higher grocery and supercenter density usually means easier access to fresh food; higher convenience-store-only density (with low grocery rate) often signals a food swamp.
Source: USDA Economic Research Service, Food Environment Atlas (ers.usda.gov). County-level metrics fanned to ZIP via the primary county in the Census ZCTA-county relationship file. Variable years differ per family (stores ~2020, low-access ~2019).
FBI publishes crime data at the county level. Numbers below cover the primary county that contains this ZIP. Rates are per 100,000 residents in the area covered by reporting agencies.
Violent crime rate
—
per 100K residents · 329 reports
Property crime rate
—
per 100K residents · 961 reports
Homicide
7
Robbery
22
Burglary
152
Vehicle theft
164
County-level data for El Paso (2024)
Source: U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation, Uniform Crime Reporting Program (cde.ucr.cjis.gov). Public domain. Coverage varies by reporting agency; areas with partial agency coverage may understate true crime totals.
Net migration (2022-2023)
▼−4,530 people
−2,160 households • −$204.6M net AGI flow
Moved in
18,630households
36,653 people • $1.0B AGI
Moved out
20,790households
41,183 people • $1.2B AGI
Where new residents came from
Where departing residents went
Incoming households reported an average AGI of $53,967 versus departing households' $58,200.
Source: U.S. Internal Revenue Service, Statistics of Income, Migration Data (irs.gov). Public domain. Migration is measured by year-over-year changes in the address on individual tax returns; figures are county-level totals attributed to ZIPs whose primary county matches. Foreign migration contributes to inflow/outflow totals but does not appear in the top-county lists. Small flows are suppressed by IRS to protect taxpayer confidentiality.
State-level rules that apply to every resident of ZIP 79838. Numbers reflect the most recent published year per source.
Income tax
None
No state income tax
Sales tax (combined)
8.20%
State 6.25% · avg local 1.95%
Property tax (effective)
1.42%
Median $1,254/year
Tax burden rank
4 of 50
8.40% of personal income
For ZIP 79838: Applied to this ZIP's typical home value of $163,505, that works out to roughly $2,327/year in property tax.
Program
Voluntary (private insurance framework)
Voluntary (private insurance framework)
SNAP eligibility
165% FPL
Broad-Based Categorical Eligibility (raises gross income limit above federal 130% floor). Asset limit $5,000.
Sources: Tax Foundation (state tax rates & brackets), Bipartisan Policy Center (paid family leave), USDA FNS (SNAP categorical eligibility).
Nearby ZIPs by distance
79836 (Clint, 6.5 mi) · 79853 (Tornillo, 6.8 mi) · 79849 (San Elizario, 8 mi) · 79927 (Socorro, 12.9 mi) · 79928 (Horizon City, 13.6 mi) · 79907 (El Paso, 18.1 mi)
Compare ZIP-level stats — population, schools, housing, climate — across nearby areas. Source: U.S. Census Bureau ZCTA basemap.
All data on this page is sourced from federal government datasets · Not AI-generated · Methodology
Crude prevalence estimates from CDC PLACES, derived from BRFSS small-area modeling. Population-level figures only.
35.9%
2.9pp above the 33.0% national rate.
36.8%
4.8pp above the 32.0% national rate.
19.9%
2.1pp below the 22.0% national rate.
75.2%
Tracks close to the 76.0% national rate.
37.5%
24.5pp above the 13.0% national rate.
19.7%
8.7pp above the 11.0% national rate.
4 schools serve this ZIP, including 4 non-charter.
| School | Type | Grades | Enrollment |
|---|---|---|---|
| FABENS H S | Public | 9–12 | 682 |
| FABENS EL | Public | -1–3 | 594 |
| FABENS MIDDLE | Public | 6–8 | 483 |
| JOHANNA ODONNELL INT | Public | 4–5 | 289 |
Schools listed from NCES Common Core of Data via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal.
Fresh.NCES CCD via Urban Institute EDP · Apr 23, 2026Colleges in this area
1
Median in-state tuition
$7,592
Median earnings (10 yr)
$41,871
Alpine, TX · 79832
Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (collegescorecard.ed.gov). Public domain data. Earnings figures reflect median earnings 10 years after entry for federally-aided students.
Fabens, TX (ZIP 79838) sits in El Paso County within the El Paso metro area. The page draws on 2 federal data feeds retrieved Apr 24. Top health signal: Health Insurance comes in above the national average at 37.5%. NCES lists 4 schools serving the area, 4 non-charter. 1 college or university serves the area, with median in-state tuition of $7,592. Local establishments report average pay of $34,450 per worker (Census ZBP) — below the US average. BLS QCEW reports average annual pay of $50,230 per worker, roughly 23% below the US average. FDIC counts just 1 bank branch in this ZIP (Summary of Deposits, 2024) — residents likely lean on neighboring ZIPs or online banking for most services. CDC's Social Vulnerability Index places this ZIP in the 93th percentile nationally — a highly vulnerable community profile. FEMA has issued 16 federal disaster declarations affecting this ZIP since 1974. Annual precipitation averages just 8.3" per NOAA's 1991–2020 Normals — an arid-climate ZCTA where landscaping and water-budget choices matter more than national averages suggest. 23.5% of residents under 65 lack health insurance per the 2025 County Health Rankings — a notable access gap. Fast-food restaurants outnumber grocery stores roughly 7-to-1 per capita (USDA Food Environment Atlas) — a "food swamp" pattern often linked to higher diet-related disease prevalence. Texas has no state income tax (Tax Foundation 2025). IRS migration data (2022-2023) shows a net loss of 4,530 residents (2,160 households) — the ZIP's primary county is shrinking. Both healthcare access and on-paper school density skew lighter than national norms; what shows up here is a snapshot, not a verdict — neighborhood-level texture matters at this scale. Notable: median household income $36,366, fair market rent of $1,080 for a two-bedroom, and a typical home value of $163,505, up 10.7% over the past year. Every figure on this page links to its underlying federal dataset with a retrieval date so you can audit the freshness yourself.
The two domains pull in different directions. Healthcare access reads strong, but the on-paper school count is on the lighter side — that’s less a quality signal and more a density one. Households here often look at districts a few ZIPs over for school choice while keeping their providers local.
One concrete reading worth keeping: Depression prevalence sits lower the national rate at 19.9%. Each figure on this page links to the original federal dataset with its retrieval date — this synthesis is a reading, not a substitute for the underlying records.
35.9%, which is 2.9 percentage points above the national average of 33.0% (CDC PLACES, retrieved Apr 24, 2026).
19.9%, which is 2.1 percentage points below the national average of 22.0% (CDC PLACES, retrieved Apr 24, 2026).
36.8%, which is 4.8 percentage points above the national average of 32.0% (CDC PLACES, retrieved Apr 24, 2026).
4 schools serve this ZIP, including 4 public schools (NCES CCD, retrieved Apr 23, 2026). No charter schools are listed in this ZIP by NCES CCD.
No charter schools are listed in ZIP 79838 by NCES CCD (retrieved Apr 23, 2026).
Yes, 1 high school serves this ZIP: Fabens H S. (NCES CCD, retrieved Apr 23, 2026).
5,470 people live in ZIP 79838, with a median age of 40.5 (Census ACS 5-Year 2022, retrieved Apr 30, 2026).
$36,366 per year (Census ACS 5-Year 2022, retrieved Apr 30, 2026).
In ZIP 79838, 76.6% of occupied housing units are owner-occupied and 23.4% are renter-occupied (Census ACS 5-Year 2022, retrieved Apr 30, 2026).
In ZIP 79838, 4.6% of workers work from home. Public transit is used by 0.0% of commuters (Census ACS 5-Year 2022, retrieved Apr 30, 2026).
24.7% of the population in ZIP 79838 lives below the federal poverty line (Census ACS 5-Year 2022, retrieved Apr 30, 2026).
83.3% of households in ZIP 79838 have broadband internet access (Census ACS 5-Year 2022, retrieved Apr 30, 2026).
The typical home value in ZIP 79838 is $163,505, up 10.7% from a year ago (Zillow Home Value Index, retrieved May 1, 2026).
Home values are up 10.7% over the past year and up 39.7% over the past five years (Zillow Home Value Index, retrieved May 1, 2026).
As of 2022, 65 business establishments operated in ZIP 79838 employing 535 workers (Census ZIP Business Patterns, retrieved May 3, 2026).
The average annual pay across all local establishments in ZIP 79838 is $34,450, based on Census ZIP Business Patterns 2022 data (retrieved May 3, 2026).
According to the CDC Social Vulnerability Index (2022), ZIP 79838 ranks in the 93th percentile nationally for social vulnerability — a very high vulnerability profile (retrieved May 3, 2026).
Household Characteristics is the highest-scoring CDC SVI theme for ZIP 79838, ranking in the 96th percentile nationally (CDC/ATSDR Social Vulnerability Index 2022, retrieved May 3, 2026).
FEMA has recorded 16 federal disaster declarations affecting ZIP 79838 between 1974–2021 (FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations, retrieved May 3, 2026).
Hurricane is the most common federally declared disaster type affecting ZIP 79838, accounting for 5 of 16 declarations (31%, FEMA OpenFEMA, retrieved May 3, 2026).
The most recent FEMA disaster declaration affecting ZIP 79838 was "SEVERE WINTER STORMS" — a severe ice storm declared in 2021 (DR-4586) (FEMA OpenFEMA, retrieved May 3, 2026).
1 college or university is listed near ZIP 79838 by the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, including Sul Ross State University (retrieved May 2, 2026).
Median in-state tuition across 1 nearby institution is $7,592 (College Scorecard, retrieved May 2, 2026).
Graduates of nearby colleges earn a median of $41,871 ten years after entry (College Scorecard, retrieved May 2, 2026).
ZIP 79838 has an average annual temperature of 63.7°F and 8.3" of annual precipitation based on the TORNILLO 2 SSE, TX US weather station 8.4 miles from the ZIP centroid (NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals, retrieved May 8, 2026).
Yes — ZIP 79838 is part of the El Paso, TX--NM urbanized area, primarily served by City of El Paso (National Transit Database 2024, retrieved May 4, 2026).
Texas has no state income tax. The combined state and local sales tax rate is 8.20% (Tax Foundation 2025).
Texas runs an active paid family leave program offering up to — weeks of paid leave per year (Bipartisan Policy Center 2026).
This page covers health outcomes from CDC PLACES (33 metrics), school information from NCES CCD (4 schools), demographics from the Census ACS 5-Year (2022), home values from the Zillow Home Value Index, colleges from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (1 institution), local business & employment from Census ZIP Business Patterns (2022), social vulnerability scores from the CDC/ATSDR SVI (2022), federal disaster declarations from FEMA OpenFEMA (16 on record), climate normals from NOAA NCEI (1991-2020), county-level crime data from the FBI Crime Data Explorer (2024), public transit coverage from the National Transit Database (2024), and state-level tax rates from the Tax Foundation. Data is refreshed on Mubboo's standard schedule.
Health data retrieved Apr 24, 2026 from CDC PLACES. School data retrieved Apr 23, 2026 from NCES CCD. Demographics retrieved Apr 30, 2026 from Census ACS 5-Year (2022). Home values retrieved May 1, 2026 from Zillow Research. College data retrieved May 2, 2026 from U.S. Dept of Education College Scorecard. Business & employment retrieved May 3, 2026 from Census ZBP (2022). Social vulnerability scores retrieved May 3, 2026 from CDC/ATSDR SVI (2022). Federal disaster declarations retrieved May 3, 2026 from FEMA OpenFEMA (16 on record). Climate normals retrieved May 8, 2026 from NOAA NCEI (1991-2020). County-level crime data retrieved May 4, 2026 from the FBI Crime Data Explorer (2024). Transit coverage retrieved May 4, 2026 from the National Transit Database (2024). State-level tax rates retrieved 2026-05-05 15:58:22.284+00 from the Tax Foundation.
Nearby ZIPs by distance
79836 (Clint, 6.5 mi) · 79853 (Tornillo, 6.8 mi) · 79849 (San Elizario, 8 mi) · 79927 (Socorro, 12.9 mi) · 79928 (Horizon City, 13.6 mi) · 79907 (El Paso, 18.1 mi)
Compare ZIP-level stats — population, schools, housing, climate — across nearby areas. Source: U.S. Census Bureau ZCTA basemap.
Have a specific question about ZIP 79838?
Ask Mubboo — launching Q4 2026.
Data refreshed via Mubboo's ETL pipeline; oldest source on this page retrieved Apr 23, 2026.
Social Vulnerability Index
Overall SVI
93rd percentile
Very High Vulnerability
Based on 5 census tracts, population 5,013
Vulnerability Themes
Households Without Vehicle
101
Limited English Speakers
997
Persons with Disability
873
Without HS Diploma
1,167
Without Health Insurance
1,316
Adults Age 65+
903
The Social Vulnerability Index uses U.S. Census data to identify communities most at risk during public health emergencies and natural disasters. Higher percentiles indicate greater vulnerability. Tract-level scores are aggregated to this ZCTA via Census 2020 ZCTA→Tract crosswalk, weighted by land-area share. Source: atsdr.cdc.gov. Public domain.