Census Update: More Householders Than Ever Own Their Homes A ratio of 2-in-3 U.S. householders (69.8 million or 66.2 percent) owned their homes last year, according to new analysis of Census 2000 data released by the Commerce Department's Census Bureau. The analysis showed a total of 115.9 million housing units in the United States in 2000, an increase of 13.6 million units or 13.3 percent since 1990. During the same period, the increase in owner-occupied homes 10.8 million, or 18.3 percent far outpaced the rise in renter-occupied units 2.7 million, or 8.3 percent. Rental units totaled 35.7 million. One in a series of Census 2000 briefs, the analysis, titled Housing Characteristics: 2000, shows that the South (17.5 percent) and the West (16.7 percent) regions experienced higher rates of housing growth than the Midwest (10.1 percent) and Northeast (6.6 percent). Highlights: Historical perspective Between 1890 and 1940, less than half of U.S. households owned their homes. The Great Depression drove ownership rates to their lowest level of the century in 1940 (43.6 percent). Since the 1950 census, when homeowners represented 55 percent of all householders, the rate of homeownership has increased steadily. By 1960, because of the post-World War II economic boom, favorable tax laws and easier mortgage financing, homeownership topped 60 percent. Homeowners across the nation The majority of householders in each of the four census regions owned their homes: Midwest, 70.2 percent; South, 68.4 percent; Northeast, 62.4; and West, 61.5 percent. Florida's metropolitan areas led in ownership rates among metro areas. West Virginia led all states in homeownership, with about 3 out of 4 householders owning their homes in the Mountaineer state. Renters across the nation Approximately one third of the 35.7 million renter-occupied units were located in the South and nearly a quarter in the West. The rest were about evenly distributed between the Northeast and the Midwest. Although renters outnumbered owners in the District of Columbia, the rental inventory decreased 3.5 percent from 1990 to 2000. In the nation's four largest cities, most householders were renters (New York, 70 percent, Los Angeles, 61 percent; Chicago, 56 percent; and Houston, 54 percent). Homeowners by age and marital status Approximately 4 out of 5 married-couple families owned their homes in 2000. Empty nesters and other married couples without children under 18 were more likely(84.8 percent) than married couples with children (76.9 percent) to own their homes. More than half (55.4 percent) of families maintained by men without spouses present were homeowners, compared with about half (49.6 percent) of families maintained by women without spouses. Women who lived alone were more likely than lone male householders to be owners,(56 percent versus 47 percent.) Homeownership was related to the age of the householders. Only about 18 percent of young householders under 25 were homeowners, but the percentage climbed to 81 percent for householders 65 to 74 years old. Census 2000 Report on Emergency & Homeless Shelters Released The Commerce Department's Census Bureau today released a new Census 2000 report, Emergency and Transitional Shelter Population: 2000, that provides tabulations on the population enumerated in emergency and transitional shelters. In this report, the population in emergency and transitional shelters were counted on March 27, 2000, and include the following facilities: emergency shelters (with sleeping facilities); shelters for children who are runaways, neglected or without conventional housing; transitional shelters for people without conventional housing; and hotels and motels used to provide shelter for people without conventional housing. Shelters for abused women (or shelters against domestic violence) are not included. Data are shown in the report for the emergency and transitional shelter population, but not separately by type of facility. Emergency and transitional shelters were one type of group quarters included in Census 2000. Others were group homes, correctional facilities, halfway houses, college dormitories and worker dormitories. The Census Bureau stressed that the shelter figures do not constitute and should not be construed as a tabulation of the total population without conventional housing or "people experiencing homelessness." Not all people without conventional housing on March 27, 2000, resided at shelters. Some may have "doubled up" at housing units owned or rented by friends or relatives or found other nonshelter locations that night. And, since the shelters were visited only one night, only the people residing at shelters open that night would have been enumerated. New Census Bureau Research Finds More People With Health Insurance Than Previously Reported The Commerce Department's Census Bureau said today it will revise its methodology to estimate the number of people with and without health insurance. Research indicated that when follow-up questions were used, about 8 percent of those previously classified as not having health insurance reported that they were in fact insured. This change will occur when estimates for 2000 are released next month. Had this methodology been used last year, the number of people without health insurance in 1999 would have been 39.3 million, down from the 42.6 million published in September 2000. Prompted by findings in other household surveys, the Census Bureau added new health insurance questions in the March 2000 Supplement to the Current Population Survey (CPS) to ascertain whether people who responded "no" to a series of broad, standard questions on health insurance coverage were actually uninsured. The results of the research was released in a paper to be presented at an American Statistical Association meeting in Atlanta at 8:30 a.m. on Aug. 7. "Following extensive testing and evaluation by Census Bureau staff, we believe that including follow-up verification questions results in more complete and accurate estimates of the population covered by health insurance," said William G. Barron Jr., the Census Bureau's acting director. "Future releases of health insurance estimates will be based on answers to questionnaires that have the verification questions." 9-in-10 School-Age Children Have Computer Access; Internet Use Pervasive, Census Bureau Reports A ratio of 9-in-10 school-age children (6-to-17 years old) had access to a computer in 2000, with 4-in-5 using a computer at school and 2-in-3 with one at home, according to a report released today by the Commerce Department's Census Bureau. The report showed that 54 million households, or 51 percent, had one or more computers in the home in August 2000, up from 42 percent in December 1998. "Since 1984, the country has experienced more than a five-fold increase in the proportion of households with computers," said Census Bureau analyst Eric Newburger, author of Home Computers and Internet Use in the United States: August 2000. "In addition, Internet use is rapidly becoming synonymous with computer availability." In 2000, more than 4-in-5 households with computers had at least one member using the Internet at home (44 million households). When the Census Bureau first collected data on Internet use in 1997, fewer than half of the households with computers had someone who was able to go online. The report measured the influence of the Internet on how people access and use information. Of the total U.S. population, about 1-in-3 adults used e-mail from home in 2000, and nearly 1-in-4 used the Internet to search for information about topics such as business, health or government services. Nearly 1-in-5 used the Internet to check on news, weather or sports. And 1-in-8 adults performed job-related tasks using a home Internet connection. Other highlights: - Nearly 9-in-10 family households with annual incomes of $75,000 or more had at least one computer and about 8-in-10 had at least one household member who used the Internet at home. - Among family households with incomes below $25,000, nearly 3-in-10 had a computer and about 2-in-10 had Internet access. - Two-thirds of households with a school-age child had a computer, and 53 percent had Internet access. - E-mail is the most common Internet application at home, used by 88 percent of adults and 73 percent of children who are online. - Single-person households were the least likely to have a computer (30 percent) or Internet access (24 percent). In households with two to four persons, 58 percent had a computer and 47 percent had Internet access. - Households in the West were the most likely to have computers (57 percent) and Internet access (47 percent). Those in the South were the least likely to have computers (47 percent) and Internet connections (38 percent). - Ninety-four million people used the Internet at home in 2000, up from 57 million in 1998. - Nearly two-thirds (65 percent) of all children 3-to-17 years old lived in a household with a computer in 2000, up from 55 percent in 1998. About 3-in-10 children used the Internet at home, compared with about 2-in-10 in 1998. - Schools have "leveled the playing field" by giving computer access to children who do not have one at home. Computer use at school was more nearly equal across various income, race or ethnic groups than was access at home. - About 77 percent of White non-Hispanic and 72 percent of Asian and Pacific Islander children lived in households with computers, while only 43 percent of African American children and 37 percent of Hispanic children did.

We hope you found this article helpful.

Search for more government articles related to:
"Census Update: More Householders Than Ever Own Their Homes"

Bookmark this Page!