HomeAlabamaShelby CountyChelsea
Chelsea, Alabama: commercial real estate data.
Chelsea is a Census city of 16,260 people across 32.62 square miles of land, in Shelby County. Median household income is $115,337, 90.0 percent of occupied homes are owned, and the SBA record carries 10 7(a) approvals to borrowers here worth $9.2 m since FY2020.
Underlined figures are computed by MMCG Analytics, not published by the agency.
Chelsea
What Chelsea is
- Census place typecity
- Land area32.62 sq mi
- Water area0.47 sq mi
- Population per square mile of land498
- County holding the largest share of its areaShelby County, 100.0 percent
US Census Bureau, cartographic boundary file, places, 2024 vintage. US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
Chelsea
How many people live in Chelsea
- Population16,260
- Median age37.6
- Population under 184,089
- Share under 1825.1 percent
- Population 65 and over2,538
- Share 65 and over15.6 percent
- Households5,724
- Family households4,744
- Share of households that are families82.9 percent
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
Chelsea
Income and work in Chelsea
- Median household income$115,337
- Per capita income$49,712
- Civilian labor force8,433
- Employed8,165
- Unemployed268 plus or minus 110
- Unemployment rate3.2 percent plus or minus 1.3
- Adults 25 and over10,962
- Adults 25 and over with a high school diploma or higher97.6 percent
- Adults 25 and over with a bachelor degree or higher48.5 percent
- Adults 25 and over with a graduate degree12.8 percent
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
Chelsea
Housing in Chelsea
- Housing units5,920
- Occupied units5,724
- Vacant units196 plus or minus 125
- Vacancy rate3.3 percent plus or minus 2.1
- Owner occupied5,154
- Renter occupied570 plus or minus 270
- Ownership rate90.0 percent
- Median owner-occupied home value$360,000
- Median gross rent, monthly$1,414 plus or minus $318
- Annual rent as a share of median income14.7 percent plus or minus 3.6
- Single family units5,758
- Share single family97.3 percent
- Units in buildings of two or more16 plus or minus 28
- Share in buildings of two or more0.3 percent plus or minus 0.5
- Mobile homes146 plus or minus 80
- Median year structure built2007
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
Chelsea
How Chelsea gets to work
- Workers 16 and over who commute6,971
- Commuting under 15 minutes1,007 plus or minus 320
- Share commuting under 15 minutes14.4 percent plus or minus 4.5
- Commuting 30 minutes or more4,387
- Share commuting 30 minutes or more62.9 percent
- Drove alone78.3 percent
- Carpooled5.3 percent plus or minus 2.1
- Public transport0.4 percent plus or minus 0.6
- Walked0.0 percent
- Worked from home15.1 percent plus or minus 3.4
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
Chelsea
SBA loans in Chelsea (7(a))
- Approvals10
- Gross approval$9,167,500
- Average approval$916,750
- Median approval$200,000
- Largest approval$5,000,000
- Jobs supported85
- Jobs per approval8.5
- Loans with a final outcome0
- Paid in full0
- Charged off0
- Median term120 months
- Share on real estate terms of 20 years or more10.0 percent
- Share to franchises30.0 percent
- Distinct lenders8
- Distinct industries by NAICS9
Counted by borrower city: approvals to borrowers whose address is in Chelsea, in any county, FY2020 to FY2026. Only 0 loans have reached a final outcome, fewer than the 30 a charge-off rate needs, so no rate is published.
US Small Business Administration, 7(a) FOIA release, FY2020 to FY2026 year to date, as of 2026-06-30.
Chelsea
SBA loans in Chelsea (504)
- Approvals4
- Gross approval$2,370,000
- Average approval$592,500
- Median approval$632,500
- Largest approval$891,000
- Jobs supported35
- Loans with a final outcome2
- Charged off0
- Median term240 months
- Distinct CDCs3
Counted by borrower city: approvals to borrowers whose address is in Chelsea, in any county, FY2010 to FY2026. Only 2 loans have reached a final outcome, fewer than the 30 a charge-off rate needs, so no rate is published.
US Small Business Administration, 504 FOIA release, FY2010 to FY2026 year to date, as of 2026-06-30.
Chelsea
Flood risk in Chelsea
- NFIP communityCity of Chelsea
- NFIP community number010432
- Participating in the NFIPYes
- Community Rating System classNone
- Currently effective map date01/23/26
The City of Chelsea participates in the National Flood Insurance Program as community 010432 and carries no Community Rating System class, so no CRS premium discount applies to it.
Federal Emergency Management Agency, NFIP Community Status Book (OpenFEMA), as of 2026-09-26.
Shelby County, not Chelsea
Shelby County context, not Chelsea figures
- Establishments in Shelby County5,610
- Covered employment, Shelby County85,169
- Average annual pay, Shelby County$66,772
- Housing units permitted, Shelby County990
Every figure in this section is published for Shelby County as a whole and is not a measurement of Chelsea.
US Census Bureau, County Business Patterns, 2023. US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 2024 annual averages. US Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey, 2024 annual.
Coverage
What this page does not hold.
Parcel detail, zoning and the flood zone at an address are not on this page; they resolve at the address in the platform. How this page was built →
Common questions
Chelsea questions, answered from the record.
How many people live in Chelsea, Alabama?
16,260, in 5,724 households. Chelsea city covers 32.62 square miles of land, which is 498 people per square mile. Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
What county is Chelsea in?
Shelby County, which holds 100.0 percent of the place by area. Source: US Census Bureau, cartographic boundary file, places, 2024 vintage.
What is the median household income in Chelsea?
$115,337. The median owner-occupied home is valued at $360,000. Median gross rent is $1,414 per month. Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
How much SBA lending goes to Chelsea businesses?
10 7(a) approvals totaling $9.2 m since FY2020, across 8 lenders, median approval $200,000, plus 4 504 approvals worth $2.4 m since FY2010. These count approvals to borrowers whose address is in Chelsea, not projects sited inside the place boundary, and they are approvals recorded in the release rather than loans disbursed.
Do SBA loans to Chelsea borrowers get paid back?
No rate is published for Chelsea. Only 0 loans have reached a final outcome, fewer than the 30 a charge-off rate needs, so no rate is published. The counts are shown instead.
Is Chelsea in the National Flood Insurance Program?
Yes. Chelsea appears in the FEMA Community Status Book as Chelsea, city of, community 010432, with no Community Rating System class, so no CRS discount applies. Whether a specific parcel sits in a mapped special flood hazard area is an address level question the platform answers.
Are the county figures on this page Chelsea figures?
No, and they are labeled so. County Business Patterns, QCEW, the Building Permits Survey, BEA product and IRS migration are published for Shelby County as a whole and there is no place level equivalent. They appear in one clearly marked section as context and are never presented as measurements of Chelsea.
Is zoning published for Chelsea?
No. Nothing on this page presents parcel level zoning.