Every six months the National Center for Health Statistics (surprisingly) examines the telephone status of households. The latest numbers are out, providing a look at the telephone status of households in the last half of 2011...
53% landline and cell phone
34% cell phone only
10% landline only
2% no telephone
The percentage of adults who live in a cell-phone-only household is in the majority for the following segments: 25-to-29-year-olds (59.6%), 30-to-34-year-olds (50.9%), unrelated adults living together (77.5%), people in households below poverty level (51.4%), and renters (56.0%).
Source: National Center for Health Statistics, Wireless Substitution: Early Release of Estimates from the National Health Interview Survey, July-December, 2011
Saturday, June 30, 2012
Friday, June 29, 2012
So Much for Deleveraging
Yes, households have been paying off their credit cards, but there's another IOU they don't have under control: nonrevolving (or installment) debt, says the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland.
The percentage of households with a balance on their credit cards fell from 46 to 39 percent between 2007 and 2010, according to the Survey of Consumer Finances. In contrast, there has been little change in the percentage of households with installment loans--46.9 percent in 2007 and 46.3 percent in 2010. The two major components of installment debt are auto and education loans. Frustratingly, the Fed's analysis of the 2010 Survey of Consumer Finances did not examine these individual components.
For the average household with debt, installment loans are much more serious than credit card debt because they are nearly five times larger (a median of $12,600 versus $2,600 in 2010). The Cleveland Fed notes that total household borrowing as a share of disposable income has been rising since the second quarter of 2009. That's because installment debt as a share of disposable income is now at a record high.
Source: Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, Consumer Deleveraging May be Over
The percentage of households with a balance on their credit cards fell from 46 to 39 percent between 2007 and 2010, according to the Survey of Consumer Finances. In contrast, there has been little change in the percentage of households with installment loans--46.9 percent in 2007 and 46.3 percent in 2010. The two major components of installment debt are auto and education loans. Frustratingly, the Fed's analysis of the 2010 Survey of Consumer Finances did not examine these individual components.
For the average household with debt, installment loans are much more serious than credit card debt because they are nearly five times larger (a median of $12,600 versus $2,600 in 2010). The Cleveland Fed notes that total household borrowing as a share of disposable income has been rising since the second quarter of 2009. That's because installment debt as a share of disposable income is now at a record high.
Source: Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, Consumer Deleveraging May be Over
Thursday, June 28, 2012
Big Cities Growing Faster
The population of the nation's cities grew 1.0 percent between 2010 and 2011, according to estimates by the Census Bureau. Interestingly, with a growth rate of 1.3 percent, large cities (with populations of 100,000 or more) grew faster than smaller cities. Among the nation's 285 large cities, only 22 lost population between 2010 and 2011.
Source: Census Bureau, City and Town Totals: Vintage 2011
Source: Census Bureau, City and Town Totals: Vintage 2011
The Obamacare Workforce
"Increasingly, the American economy is being defined by its healthcare sector," according to a new report, Healthcare, by Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce.
With or without Obamacare, notes the report, there will be 5.6 million more health care jobs in 2020 than today. Health care employment is projected to grow twice as fast as the national economy during this decade. The report looks at the demographics of the health care workforce and examines job growth by health care field, occupation, and wage.
With or without Obamacare, notes the report, there will be 5.6 million more health care jobs in 2020 than today. Health care employment is projected to grow twice as fast as the national economy during this decade. The report looks at the demographics of the health care workforce and examines job growth by health care field, occupation, and wage.
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
Two Facts and a Theory that Might Explain Them
Facts
1. Fastest growing state, 2010-2011: District of Columbia (up 2.7 percent).
2. Metro with the highest median household income, 2010: Washington, D.C. ($84,523).
Theory
"Historically in nations where city economies are dying...one city remains vivacious longest: the capital city. This is because capital cities thrive on transactions of decline...transfer payments, subsidies, grants, military contracts and promotion of international advanced-backward trade...Behind its busyness at ruling, a capital city of a nation or an empire, vivacious to the last, at length reveals itself as being a surprisingly inert, backward and pitiable place."
Facts are from the Census Bureau.
Theory is from Cities and the Wealth of Nations: Principles of Economic Life, Jane Jacobs.
1. Fastest growing state, 2010-2011: District of Columbia (up 2.7 percent).
2. Metro with the highest median household income, 2010: Washington, D.C. ($84,523).
Theory
"Historically in nations where city economies are dying...one city remains vivacious longest: the capital city. This is because capital cities thrive on transactions of decline...transfer payments, subsidies, grants, military contracts and promotion of international advanced-backward trade...Behind its busyness at ruling, a capital city of a nation or an empire, vivacious to the last, at length reveals itself as being a surprisingly inert, backward and pitiable place."
Facts are from the Census Bureau.
Theory is from Cities and the Wealth of Nations: Principles of Economic Life, Jane Jacobs.
No More Easy Access to Crime Statistics
Get ready to say goodbye to another jewel in the demographic reference genre. The Sourcebook of Criminal Justice Statistics Online is soon to join the Statistical Abstract in the potter's field of indigent projects, victims of the defunding of American civic life.
Budget cuts at the Bureau of Justice Statistics are likely the death knell for the Sourcebook, which was compiled for the past four decades by the School of Criminal Justice at the State University of New York at Albany. The loss of easy access to statistics on crime and imprisonment is unfortunate, since the U.S. has the highest imprisonment rate in the world (743 people in prison per 100,000 population--well ahead of second place Rwanda with a rate of 595); 7 million American adults are on probation, in prison, or on parole; and federal, state, and local government spending on our bloated justice system now surpasses $200 billion a year.
Maybe eliminating easy access to these horrific statistics is the point.
Budget cuts at the Bureau of Justice Statistics are likely the death knell for the Sourcebook, which was compiled for the past four decades by the School of Criminal Justice at the State University of New York at Albany. The loss of easy access to statistics on crime and imprisonment is unfortunate, since the U.S. has the highest imprisonment rate in the world (743 people in prison per 100,000 population--well ahead of second place Rwanda with a rate of 595); 7 million American adults are on probation, in prison, or on parole; and federal, state, and local government spending on our bloated justice system now surpasses $200 billion a year.
Maybe eliminating easy access to these horrific statistics is the point.
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
Cell Phone Internet Use
88% of American adults own a cell phone.
55% of cell phone owners use their phone to go online.
Among the 55 percent of people who access the Internet using their cell phone, a substantial 31 percent use their cell phone for most of their Internet browsing. Among 18-to-29-year-olds, 45 percent use their phone for most of their browsing. Among blacks, the proportion is an even larger 51 percent. The single biggest reason for using a cell phone for most Internet browsing is convenience and availability, cited by 64 percent. Only 10 percent say it is because they have no other Internet access.
Source: Pew Internet & American Life Project, Cell Internet Use 2012
55% of cell phone owners use their phone to go online.
Among the 55 percent of people who access the Internet using their cell phone, a substantial 31 percent use their cell phone for most of their Internet browsing. Among 18-to-29-year-olds, 45 percent use their phone for most of their browsing. Among blacks, the proportion is an even larger 51 percent. The single biggest reason for using a cell phone for most Internet browsing is convenience and availability, cited by 64 percent. Only 10 percent say it is because they have no other Internet access.
Source: Pew Internet & American Life Project, Cell Internet Use 2012
Notable Changes in Time Use
If you compare the results of the 2011 American Time Use Survey with those from 2007, before the Great Recession, you can glean the many ways in which life has changed...
- Fewer men at work: Only 50 percent of men aged 15 or older worked on an average day in 2011, down from 54 percent in 2007.
- More sleep: With more people out of work, average sleep time increased from 8.57 to 8.71 hours per night.
- More home cooking: The percentage of people who participated in food preparation and cleanup on an average day grew from 51 to 53 percent.
- More schooling: The percentage of people aged 15 or older who attended classes or did homework on an average day climbed from 7.9 to 8.4 percent.
- Fewer watching TV: The percentage of people who watch TV on an average day fell by more than 1 percentage point between 2007 and 2011--from 79.5 to 78.3 percent. Among those who watched TV on an average day, however, viewing time grew from 3.30 to 3.51 hours.
- Fewer caring for kids: As births fell from their 2007 peak, the share who care for household children on an average day fell by a full percentage point--from 21.8 to 20.8 percent.
Monday, June 25, 2012
Fewer Shoppers
Newly released statistics from the 2011 American Time Use Survey provide a glimpse of how the Great Recession has changed daily life. Those changes, in turn, have taken a toll on the economy. The decline in shopping is a good example.
Women are the primary shoppers, and fewer women shopped in 2011 than in 2007. On an average day in 2011, 46.6 percent of women aged 15 or older shopped in a store, by telephone, or online. This compares with a larger 48.2 percent of women who shopped for goods and services on an average day in 2007. Do the math and that's 2 million fewer shoppers per day than would have been in the marketplace if the percentage who shopped had remained the same.
To add insult to injury, the women who shopped on an average day in 2011 spent less time doing so--only 1.77 hours in 2011 versus 1.92 hours in 2007.
Women are the primary shoppers, and fewer women shopped in 2011 than in 2007. On an average day in 2011, 46.6 percent of women aged 15 or older shopped in a store, by telephone, or online. This compares with a larger 48.2 percent of women who shopped for goods and services on an average day in 2007. Do the math and that's 2 million fewer shoppers per day than would have been in the marketplace if the percentage who shopped had remained the same.
To add insult to injury, the women who shopped on an average day in 2011 spent less time doing so--only 1.77 hours in 2011 versus 1.92 hours in 2007.
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, American Time Use Survey
Sunday, June 24, 2012
Support for an Atheist
Only 54 percent of the Americans would be willing to vote for an atheist for president of the United States. The percentage varies considerably by age...
18 to 29: 70%
30 to 49: 56%
50 to 64: 48%
65-plus: 40%
Source: Gallup, Atheists, Muslims See Most Bias as Presidential Candidates
18 to 29: 70%
30 to 49: 56%
50 to 64: 48%
65-plus: 40%
Source: Gallup, Atheists, Muslims See Most Bias as Presidential Candidates
Saturday, June 23, 2012
The Mexican Dream
Most Mexicans do not want to live in the United States. When asked whether they would like to move to the U.S., the 61 percent majority of Mexicans say no, according to a Pew Survey. Eighteen percent say they would move to the United States if they could do it legally, and another 19 percent say they would like to move to the U.S. even if they have to do it illegally.
Source: Pew Research Center, Mexicans Back Military Campaign against Cartels
Source: Pew Research Center, Mexicans Back Military Campaign against Cartels
Friday, June 22, 2012
Economic Insecurity State by State
What is the single most important ingredient needed to maintain a middle-class lifestyle? Economic security: the ability to withstand economic shocks caused by a sudden loss of income. Unfortunately, the shocks are increasingly common and the security is increasingly elusive, which explains why the middle class is shrinking. In 2010, a substantial 20.5 percent of Americans were economically insecure--up from 14.3 percent in 1986, according to the Economic Security Index (ESI)--a research initiative led by Yale political scientist Jacob S. Hacker. The economic insecurity of Americans varies greatly by state, however, and those state numbers are now available in a new ESI report.
ESI defines the economically insecure as Americans who have experienced a one-year drop of at least 25 percent in their disposable household income (the income that remains after paying for medical care and servicing debt) and who lack savings to cope with the decline.
Economic insecurity has been rising in every state without exception. But some states are worse than others. Insecurity is greatest in Mississippi, where 24.5 percent of the population experienced at least a 25 percent drop in income in 2010 and lacked savings to make it through the hard times. Insecurity is lowest in New Hampshire, where a smaller (but still substantial) 17.0 percent of the population found themselves in financial free fall in 2010. Reports for individual states can be downloaded from the site.
Source: Economic Security Index, Economic Insecurity Across the American States
ESI defines the economically insecure as Americans who have experienced a one-year drop of at least 25 percent in their disposable household income (the income that remains after paying for medical care and servicing debt) and who lack savings to cope with the decline.
Economic insecurity has been rising in every state without exception. But some states are worse than others. Insecurity is greatest in Mississippi, where 24.5 percent of the population experienced at least a 25 percent drop in income in 2010 and lacked savings to make it through the hard times. Insecurity is lowest in New Hampshire, where a smaller (but still substantial) 17.0 percent of the population found themselves in financial free fall in 2010. Reports for individual states can be downloaded from the site.
Source: Economic Security Index, Economic Insecurity Across the American States
Thursday, June 21, 2012
Immigration = Good
Percentage of Americans who think immigration is a good thing for the country: 66%.
Source: Gallup, Americans More Positive about Immigration
Source: Gallup, Americans More Positive about Immigration
Asian American Identity
Only 19 percent of Asian Americans identify themselves as Asian American. The 62 percent majority describe themselves by their country of origin rather than Asian or Asian American.
Source: Pew Research Center, The Rise of Asian Americans
Source: Pew Research Center, The Rise of Asian Americans
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
Sharing a Household
A new Census Bureau report examines the widely reported phenomena of what the bureau calls "shared households." These are defined as households that include adults who are neither the householder, the spouse, a cohabiting partner, or in school.
The bureau estimates that there were 22 million shared households in 2010, accounting for a substantial 19 percent of total households and up from 17 percent in 2007. Sixty-nine million adults (30 percent of the population aged 18 or older) live in a shared household.
To understand the shared household, take a look at the characteristics of the additional adults who live there. Eighty-two percent are relatives of the householder. Forty-six percent are a child of the householder, 13 percent are a parent of the householder, 8 percent are a brother or sister of the householder, and 14 percent are some other relative. The 56 percent majority of additional adults in shared households are aged 18 to 34.
Source: Census Bureau, Sharing a Household: Household Composition and Economic Well-Being: 2007-2010
The bureau estimates that there were 22 million shared households in 2010, accounting for a substantial 19 percent of total households and up from 17 percent in 2007. Sixty-nine million adults (30 percent of the population aged 18 or older) live in a shared household.
To understand the shared household, take a look at the characteristics of the additional adults who live there. Eighty-two percent are relatives of the householder. Forty-six percent are a child of the householder, 13 percent are a parent of the householder, 8 percent are a brother or sister of the householder, and 14 percent are some other relative. The 56 percent majority of additional adults in shared households are aged 18 to 34.
Source: Census Bureau, Sharing a Household: Household Composition and Economic Well-Being: 2007-2010
Net Worth Minus Home Equity
Take away the house, and Americans have little wealth. Median household net worth was $66,740 in 2010, according to the Census Bureau, but falls to just $15,000 if home equity is excluded. Here is median household net worth excluding home equity by age of householder...
Under age 35: $3,528
Aged 35 to 44: $11,945
Aged 45 to 54: $23,738
Aged 55 to 64: $40,990
Aged 65-plus: $28,518
Source: Census Bureau, Wealth and Asset Ownership
Under age 35: $3,528
Aged 35 to 44: $11,945
Aged 45 to 54: $23,738
Aged 55 to 64: $40,990
Aged 65-plus: $28,518
Source: Census Bureau, Wealth and Asset Ownership
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
Nursing Home Costs
A growing percentage of people aged 65 or older are experiencing nursing home stays. According to a report by the Employee Benefit Research Institute, 8.5 percent of Americans aged 65 or older had a nursing home stay in 2010, up from 6.0 percent in 2000.
Because only 14 percent of older Americans who enter a nursing home are covered by long-term care insurance, a stay in a nursing home depletes household wealth. The median household net worth of people aged 65 or older who experienced a stay in a nursing home was $102,073 before entry. After six months in a nursing home, median net worth was just $5,518.
Source: Employee Benefit Research Institute, Effects of Nursing Home Stays on Household Portfolios
Because only 14 percent of older Americans who enter a nursing home are covered by long-term care insurance, a stay in a nursing home depletes household wealth. The median household net worth of people aged 65 or older who experienced a stay in a nursing home was $102,073 before entry. After six months in a nursing home, median net worth was just $5,518.
Source: Employee Benefit Research Institute, Effects of Nursing Home Stays on Household Portfolios
How Big a Rainy Day Fund?
When families are asked how much money they need to set aside for emergencies, the median amount they report is $5,000. But the figure rises with income from a low of $2,000 for households with the lowest incomes to a high of $30,000 for households in the top 10 percent of household income. As a percentage, however, households believe they need pretty much the same amount--10.8 percent of income socked away for a rainy day.
Source: Federal Reserve Board, Federal Reserve Bulletin, Changes in U.S. Family Finances from 2007 to 2010: Evidence from the Survey of Consumer Finances
Source: Federal Reserve Board, Federal Reserve Bulletin, Changes in U.S. Family Finances from 2007 to 2010: Evidence from the Survey of Consumer Finances
Monday, June 18, 2012
Senior Pranks
Percentage of high school seniors who did the following during the past month...
Texted while driving: 58%
Drank alcohol: 48%
Used marijuana: 28%
Smoked cigarettes: 25%
Source: CDC, Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance--2011
Texted while driving: 58%
Drank alcohol: 48%
Used marijuana: 28%
Smoked cigarettes: 25%
Source: CDC, Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance--2011
It's The House, Stupid!
Today the Census Bureau released its own survey findings on household wealth, confirming the bad news reported last week by the Federal Reserve Board. Median household net worth in 2010 was $66,740, says the bureau, even lower than the $77,300 reported by the Fed, and down 35 percent since 2005 after adjusting for inflation.
Anyone tempted to dismiss the decline in household wealth as "just" a consequence of the collapse of the housing market, keep in mind that housing is the single most important asset owned by the average household. Excluding home equity, median household net worth is only $15,000, according to the Census Bureau. It might be possible to dismiss the loss of housing wealth as a temporary aberration, soon to be corrected, if the demographic headwinds (downsizing boomers and struggling younger adults) were not so formidable. A rebound is unlikely for years to come.
Source: Census Bureau, Wealth and Asset Ownership
Anyone tempted to dismiss the decline in household wealth as "just" a consequence of the collapse of the housing market, keep in mind that housing is the single most important asset owned by the average household. Excluding home equity, median household net worth is only $15,000, according to the Census Bureau. It might be possible to dismiss the loss of housing wealth as a temporary aberration, soon to be corrected, if the demographic headwinds (downsizing boomers and struggling younger adults) were not so formidable. A rebound is unlikely for years to come.
Source: Census Bureau, Wealth and Asset Ownership
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