Northeast

Boston Poised to Stabilize

March 25, 2010
Prices in Boston have corrected to 2002 levels, and we expect relatively flat prices this year and slowly rising prices over the next few years. Digging down deeper into the MSA, the low end of the market is stabilizing, while the high end hasn’t corrected nearly as much and is still falling.
Economy: The Boston economy has fared better than most other areas of the country, and better than the devastating downturn in the late 1980s and early 1990s, when Boston lost 5.5% of its employment base just between 1990 and 1992 (and more before 1990, but MSA boundary changes make the data unavailable). After prices fell, home price appreciation didn’t pick up again in earnest until 1998. So far in this recession, Boston has lost only 4.7% of its job base, compared to 6.1% for the country.
Construction: Boston’s residential construction has also slowed, but it never got overbuilt the way other markets did. Total residential construction peaked in 1986 at 10,600 units and fell 76% from then until 1991. Construction stayed below 4,000 units for the next 7 years. In this cycle, permit activity started ramping up quickly in 2003 and peaked in 2006 at 6,800 units, almost entirely because of an increase in multifamily activity. Since that peak, permits have come down 61% to 2,700 units and we expect permits to remain low for the next several years, ranging between 2,000 and 2,600 units.
In summary, Boston’s housing market has fared much better than most, with fewer job losses and less overbuilding. Look for Boston, led by its robust financial services sector, to be one of the first markets to stabilize.
This is the most current available data for all variables and markets.
Permits Statistics
Employment Statistics
Affordability
12-
12-
Total
NF Payroll Employment
State Metro Area*
Month S. Fam. Permits
Month Total Permits
Permits / Peak Permits
1-Yr Growth
1-Yr Growth Rate
Unemp Rate
Median Home Price
Housing Costs / Income
Housing Cycle Barometer
Alabama
Anniston-Oxford 129 182 39% (1,200) (2.3%) 10.7% $87,117 19% 0.6
Auburn-Opelika 658 1,393 63% (1,800) (3.4%) 9.2% $130,937 27% 0.4
Birmingham 1,748 1,856 24% (14,900) (2.9%) 9.8% $145,887 25% 1.7
Decatur 88 88 9% (2,800) (5.0%) 11.2% $96,759 18% 0.6
Dothan 235 293 39% (1,100) (1.8%) 9.3% $90,931 19% 0.4
Florence 139 191 24% (1,600) (2.9%) 11.0% $95,140 20% 0.6
Gadsden 118 118 30% (400) (1.1%) 10.6% $85,830 20% 1.1
Huntsville 2,447 3,160 63% (1,800) (0.9%) 8.1% $121,937 19% 0.8
Mobile 1,204 2,049 74% (3,700) (2.0%) 11.3% $128,191 27% 3.6
Montgomery 459 489 19% (3,300) (1.9%) 9.9% $131,214 24% 1.2
Tuscaloosa 390 692 26% (2,000) (2.1%) 9.5% $117,875 23% 0.2
Alaska
Anchorage 303 557 6% (1,400) (0.8%) 7.7% $187,024 22% 0.7
Fairbanks 37 37 5% (900) (2.5%) 8.3% $141,271 19% 0.2
Arizona
Flagstaff 116 478 35% (3,400) (5.4%) 8.7% $300,000 56% 7.0
Phoenix 9,858 10,573 15% (89,400) (5.0%) 8.2% $130,000 21% 1.4
Prescott 362 521 12% (2,200) (3.8%) 9.3% $137,232 28% 0.0
Tucson 2,067 2,140 17% (13,400) (3.7%) 8.0% $165,500 32% 3.3
Yuma 672 764 28% (2,400) (4.7%) 19.5% $125,500 28% 3.2
Arkansas
Fayetteville 1,032 1,591 21% (1,600) (0.8%) 5.7% $104,373 18% 0.3
Fort Smith 618 878 67% (1,300) (1.1%) 7.9% $77,340 15% 0.2
Hot Springs 39 39 10% (400) (1.0%) 7.5% $114,436 24% 0.4
Jonesboro 450 469 48% (300) (0.6%) 7.0% $76,392 15% 0.3
Little Rock 1,806 2,736 48% (3,800) (1.1%) 6.5% $133,473 23% 3.1
Pine Bluff 53 77 19% (600) (1.6%) 9.7% $67,235 14% 0.3
California
Bakersfield 1,650 1,983 22% (5,600) (2.4%) 15.8% $120,000 22% 1.1
Chico 327 381 19% (2,000) (2.8%) 13.4% $150,000 31% 0.0
El Centro 267 272 12% (800) (1.8%) 27.7% $110,000 25% 1.2
Fresno 2,012 2,228 30% (7,300) (2.5%) 16.8% $145,500 28% 2.1
Hanford 165 165 12% (1,800) (5.0%) 17.1% $98,500 18% 0.0
Los Angeles (D) 2,092 4,825 7% (112,800) (2.9%) 12.0% $325,000 49% 3.5
Madera 64 116 5% (800) (2.3%) 15.4% $124,500 24% 0.8
Merced 101 106 3% (1,100) (2.0%) 19.8% $112,000 22% 0.8
Modesto 308 308 5% (5,400) (3.6%) 17.5% $132,500 22% 0.4
Monterey 103 243 9% (5,300) (4.3%) 16.7% $235,000 34% 1.3
Napa 123 137 14% (2,400) (4.0%) 10.2% $329,000 43% 3.0
Oakland (D) 1,914 2,625 11% (30,400) (3.1%) 10.9% $300,000 34% 1.6
Orange County (D) 1,346 2,146 9% (47,700) (3.3%) 9.1% $490,000 55% 5.1
Redding 197 225 10% (1,900) (3.2%) 15.9% $170,000 34% 3.0
Riverside-San Bernardino 4,750 5,955 10% (50,100) (4.3%) 14.0% $170,550 25% 1.2
Sacramento 2,501 2,912 12% (40,200) (4.7%) 12.3% $200,000 28% 1.4
San Diego 2,069 3,440 8% (42,200) (3.3%) 10.1% $345,000 46% 3.4
San Francisco (D) 399 996 15% (44,800) (4.6%) 8.9% $639,500 69% 3.8
San Jose 650 1,118 11% (35,400) (4.0%) 11.5% $475,000 47% 3.0
San Luis Obispo 304 386 11% (1,700) (1.7%) 9.4% $390,000 58% 5.1
Santa Barbara 203 230 8% (4,000) (2.4%) 9.3% $312,000 45% 2.9
Santa Cruz 130 130 9% (1,700) (1.9%) 13.5% $400,000 52% 1.6
Santa Rosa 386 439 8% (6,000) (3.4%) 10.1% $336,500 45% 3.0
Stockton 759 759 11% (6,600) (3.3%) 17.1% $160,000 25% 0.9
Vallejo-Fairfield 654 654 11% (4,600) (3.8%) 11.9% $206,000 26% 1.1
Ventura 229 397 5% (11,000) (3.9%) 10.9% $390,000 43% 3.7
Visalia-Porterville 983 1,028 29% (4,100) (3.7%) 17.5% $130,000 25% 1.6
Yuba-Sutter 193 193 6% (2,500) (6.4%) 19.6% $156,000 28% 1.1
Colorado
Boulder 212 479 9% (6,500) (4.0%) 5.7% $300,000 35% 4.5
Colorado Springs 1,402 1,416 13% (9,200) (3.7%) 7.9% $177,500 24% 1.4
Denver 2,879 4,319 15% (38,700) (3.2%) 7.5% $200,000 26% 2.8
Fort Collins 372 444 12% (4,000) (3.0%) 6.1% $215,000 30% 3.2
Grand Junction 371 373 18% (5,000) (7.7%) 9.0% $141,338 22% 0.0
Greeley 769 818 19% (4,700) (5.8%) 8.6% $158,900 23% 1.4
Pueblo 183 376 26% (1,600) (2.8%) 8.5% $80,295 16% 0.0
Connecticut
Bridgeport 460 1,172 22% (11,100) (2.7%) 7.8% $396,037 40% 0.8
Hartford 877 1,187 11% (12,000) (2.2%) 8.6% $226,368 29% 0.1
New Haven 340 447 6% (4,600) (1.7%) 8.3% $225,326 31% 0.7
Norwich 266 434 16% (3,600) (2.8%) 8.1% $206,963 26% 0.2
Delaware
Dover 741 825 38% (2,000) (3.2%) 8.2% $184,282 35% 6.1
Wilmington (D) 882 1,187 19% (11,900) (3.5%) 8.8% $192,121 30% 3.4
District of Columbia
Washington D.C. (D) 7,586 10,443 28% (18,400) (0.8%) 6.4% $306,992 28% 2.5
Florida
Daytona Beach 726 798 10% (4,600) (2.8%) 12.5% $100,000 20% 0.1
Fort Lauderdale (D) 607 989 5% (19,000) (2.5%) 10.0% $161,900 28% 1.0
Fort Myers 953 1,012 4% (11,100) (5.4%) 13.8% $86,000 15% 0.3
Fort Walton Beach 327 351 9% (2,200) (2.8%) 8.4% $160,206 26% 0.7
Gainesville 434 568 17% (2,800) (2.1%) 7.9% $156,296 34% 2.0
Jacksonville 3,352 4,699 19% (15,200) (2.5%) 11.3% $143,000 24% 3.4
Lakeland 1,158 1,158 9% (5,700) (2.8%) 12.8% $99,900 20% 1.1
Melbourne 953 1,014 10% (6,000) (3.0%) 12.1% $118,300 21% 1.5
Miami (D) 615 1,095 4% (20,300) (2.0%) 11.3% $170,000 35% 2.7
Naples 663 1,022 13% (8,300) (6.7%) 11.9% $210,000 32% 2.3
Ocala 368 383 5% (3,500) (3.5%) 14.0% $99,950 22% 2.3
Orlando 3,880 4,805 13% (38,900) (3.7%) 11.9% $130,000 23% 1.4
Panama City 260 348 6% (1,800) (2.5%) 11.5% $155,173 29% 3.5
Pensacola 1,021 1,242 19% (3,400) (2.1%) 10.7% $127,952 25% 0.7
Port St. Lucie 392 453 4% (1,600) (1.3%) 13.6% $102,000 18% 0.0
Punta Gorda 262 282 6% (1,300) (3.1%) 13.0% $105,000 20% 1.0
Sarasota 1,376 1,830 13% (12,900) (5.0%) 12.5% $157,200 29% 4.3
Tallahassee 586 657 15% (4,000) (2.3%) 8.2% $140,764 27% 0.0
Tampa 3,972 7,008 19% (50,200) (4.2%) 12.4% $120,000 23% 2.3
West Palm Beach (D) 1,187 1,277 6% (13,000) (2.4%) 11.5% $215,000 36% 5.0
Georgia
Albany 187 226 18% (1,200) (1.9%) 10.5% $87,991 20% 1.0
Athens 382 415 18% (2,700) (3.2%) 7.2% $128,422 27% 0.3
Atlanta 5,653 6,845 9% (103,500) (4.4%) 10.1% $122,508 18% 1.0
Augusta 2,430 2,576 47% (4,400) (2.1%) 9.3% $109,385 22% 1.0
Brunswick 402 402 32% (1,200) (2.7%) 8.9% $140,911 27% 2.9
Columbus 901 1,222 54% (2,400) (2.0%) 9.3% $103,823 22% 0.9
Dalton 141 167 15% (4,200) (6.0%) 12.6% $99,673 21% 0.7
Gainesville 255 573 22% (3,200) (4.2%) 9.0% $130,212 23% 0.8
Hinesville 322 574 65% 100 0.5% 8.0% $101,017 22% 1.5
Macon 357 359 19% (5,500) (5.5%) 10.0% $94,520 20% 0.8
Rome 73 88 12% (300) (0.8%) 10.7% $91,033 20% 0.8
Savannah 1,163 1,498 31% (4,100) (2.6%) 8.4% $135,361 25% 3.6
Valdosta 513 813 56% (3,200) (5.8%) 8.5% $105,166 25% 1.3
Warner Robins 696 720 34% (900) (1.6%) 7.4% $94,597 15% 0.3
Hawaii
Honolulu 850 1,024 21% (13,100) (3.0%) 5.3% $520,889 67% 3.8
Idaho
Boise City 1,789 1,826 16% (14,500) (5.7%) 9.9% $149,484 24% 1.0
Coeur D'Alene 772 874 33% (2,100) (3.9%) 10.4% $141,704 25% 1.5
Idaho Falls 338 426 22% (2,000) (4.0%) 6.6% $99,190 16% 0.0
Lewiston 81 86 21% (700) (2.5%) 6.6% $125,298 24% 1.7
Pocatello 162 169 24% (1,400) (3.8%) 7.9% $92,993 17% 0.0
Illinois
Bloomington 323 476 28% (1,300) (1.5%) 7.7% $153,029 24% 1.2
Champaign-Urbana 311 401 18% (1,200) (1.1%) 8.5% $142,625 28% 5.0
Chicago (D) 2,849 4,413 10% (158,300) (4.3%) 10.6% $170,000 26% 0.2
Danville 15 15 8% (800) (2.6%) 12.5% $56,672 13% 1.1
Decatur 27 62 10% (2,500) (4.6%) 12.9% $88,153 18% 3.4
Kankakee-Bradley 162 178 22% (1,500) (3.5%) 14.3% $129,048 23% 5.7
Lake-Kenosha (D) 631 695 11% (13,600) (3.5%) 11.3% $220,079 27% 1.3
Peoria 505 533 28% (6,500) (3.5%) 11.2% $123,711 22% 5.4
Rockford 231 233 9% (3,000) (2.0%) 16.0% $110,267 21% 5.5
Springfield 348 436 28% (2,700) (2.4%) 8.4% $112,251 19% 1.8
Indiana
Anderson 71 77 10% (1,000) (2.5%) 11.0% $79,118 16% 0.8
Bloomington 232 302 25% 1,800 2.2% 6.9% $120,613 26% 1.2
Columbus 119 119 19% (2,000) (4.4%) 8.5% $114,557 19% 0.7
Elkhart-Goshen 140 188 11% (5,300) (4.9%) 14.8% $103,198 19% 0.9
Evansville 610 712 33% (4,200) (2.5%) 8.1% $88,559 17% 1.0
Fort Wayne 784 904 25% (6,500) (3.1%) 10.1% $93,945 17% 1.9
Gary (D) 964 1,155 25% (5,000) (1.8%) 10.0% $110,728 19% 2.3
Indianapolis 3,748 5,695 33% (28,700) (3.3%) 8.5% $111,638 18% 1.7
Kokomo 15 77 10% (2,300) (6.2%) 12.2% $81,324 15% 0.6
Lafayette 494 521 29% (1,700) (1.8%) 8.6% $106,749 21% 0.9
Michigan City 102 108 18% (700) (1.6%) 11.9% $107,357 21% 2.2
Muncie 34 34 6% (1,200) (2.3%) 10.4% $72,413 17% 0.4
South Bend 304 354 18% (6,200) (4.5%) 11.1% $77,573 15% 1.5
Terre Haute 120 125 18% (2,500) (3.5%) 10.7% $72,213 16% 0.4
Iowa
Ames 115 115 12% (1,300) (2.7%) 4.6% $129,120 22% 0.6
Cedar Rapids 698 1,181 57% (1,400) (1.0%) 6.5% $136,800 22% 3.2
Davenport 380 671 44% (3,600) (1.9%) 9.2% $113,489 21% 5.1
Des Moines 1,829 2,504 40% (8,400) (2.7%) 6.5% $151,245 22% 2.4
Dubuque 327 443 51% (1,100) (2.0%) 6.7% $111,344 19% 1.1
Iowa City 636 716 42% (900) (1.0%) 4.5% $146,027 23% 0.3
Sioux City 118 142 12% (2,100) (2.8%) 5.9% $85,167 15% 0.6
Waterloo 355 367 44% (2,400) (2.7%) 6.2% $109,325 20% 5.1
Kansas
Lawrence 199 355 19% (2,300) (4.6%) 4.6% $137,685 25% 1.0
Topeka 365 513 37% (2,600) (2.4%) 6.0% $109,765 18% 2.5
Wichita 1,363 1,871 41% (17,000) (5.5%) 7.6% $120,418 20% 3.0
Kentucky
Bowling Green 292 430 31% (3,600) (6.1%) 9.4% $104,428 23% 1.5
Elizabethtown 415 485 37% (200) (0.4%) 10.1% $104,375 21% 2.0
Lexington 1,349 1,553 30% (6,600) (2.7%) 7.9% $142,629 27% 3.7
Louisville 2,202 2,544 28% (12,300) (2.1%) 10.2% $128,258 25% 4.8
Owensboro 252 255 23% (1,500) (3.0%) 9.1% $81,282 18% 1.4
Louisiana
Alexandria 387 431 45% (1,300) (2.0%) 6.8% $89,330 21% 0.0
Baton Rouge 2,977 3,069 34% (10,200) (2.7%) 6.9% $167,245 32% 5.3
Houma 500 556 47% (2,200) (2.3%) 5.2% $110,106 21% 2.0
Lafayette 760 843 17% (1,500) (1.0%) 5.8% $124,857 25% 1.8
Lake Charles 900 1,285 86% (700) (0.8%) 6.9% $103,526 22% 2.0
Monroe 268 275 23% (1,700) (2.2%) 7.6% $92,401 22% 1.6
New Orleans 2,165 2,775 21% (7,200) (1.4%) 6.8% $162,737 32% 5.1
Shreveport 1,075 1,311 43% (3,800) (2.1%) 7.1% $147,693 34% 5.5
Maine
Bangor 301 383 39% (1,100) (1.7%) 7.3% $112,633 22% 0.0
Lewiston-Auburn 157 177 21% (1,300) (2.7%) 8.5% $120,102 23% 0.0
Portland 1,050 1,124 20% (5,100) (2.7%) 6.7% $201,752 31% 1.5
Maryland
Baltimore 3,228 5,145 26% (23,500) (1.8%) 7.6% $249,000 36% 6.1
Bethesda (D) 1,609 1,740 14% 3,000 0.5% 5.3% $335,000 35% 5.1
Cumberland 119 184 45% 200 0.5% 8.9% $114,846 27% 5.3
Hagerstown 674 682 17% (1,700) (1.7%) 9.7% $150,265 26% 0.3
Salisbury 152 210 16% (100) (0.2%) 9.2% $131,453 27% 0.7
Massachusetts
Barnstable Town 301 326 7% (5,200) (5.8%) 10.7% $314,425 43% 1.4
Boston (D) 1,071 2,658 25% (30,800) (1.9%) 7.7% $317,822 39% 2.1
Cambridge (D) 1,150 1,747 23% (33,900) (1.4%) 8.2% $363,132 38% 1.3
Pittsfield 67 71 8% (1,100) (3.1%) 8.9% $186,336 32% 1.6
Springfield 609 654 13% (6,700) (2.3%) 9.7% $182,044 29% 1.0
Worcester 867 1,086 15% (3,400) (1.4%) 9.4% $202,671 25% 0.4
Michigan
Ann Arbor 255 296 10% (1,700) (0.9%) 9.0% $150,602 21% 0.0
Battle Creek 12 12 2% (1,600) (2.9%) 12.7% $78,314 16% 0.8
Bay City 126 126 28% (1,500) (4.1%) 13.7% $78,297 15% 0.4
Detroit (D) 286 374 6% (30,600) (4.3%) 15.7% $81,818 16% 0.1
Flint 70 185 5% (9,500) (7.0%) 16.6% $75,101 15% 0.4
Grand Rapids 776 801 16% (11,600) (3.2%) 12.2% $82,103 14% 0.9
Holland 396 454 17% (6,900) (6.7%) 13.3% $127,741 19% 0.5
Jackson 61 113 11% (3,200) (5.9%) 15.4% $89,420 17% 1.4
Kalamazoo 395 406 17% (4,800) (3.5%) 12.3% $108,536 20% 0.7
Lansing 260 353 11% (5,400) (2.5%) 11.7% $78,096 13% 0.9
Monroe 92 92 8% (2,500) (6.4%) 14.7% $112,466 17% 0.4
Muskegon 69 94 10% (2,700) (4.5%) 16.2% $81,013 17% 0.6
Niles 121 127 16% (3,200) (5.3%) 14.4% $113,099 23% 3.1
Saginaw 108 118 12% (3,600) (4.4%) 14.0% $34,731 7% 0.5
Warren (D) 1,020 1,125 6% (78,500) (7.5%) 14.3% $138,907 19% 0.2
Minnesota
Duluth 463 544 32% (4,400) (3.4%) 8.2% $107,344 23% 6.7
Minneapolis 3,699 4,735 17% (45,900) (2.7%) 7.2% $180,394 27% 4.3
Rochester 444 556 28% (400) (0.4%) 6.0% $126,793 19% 1.6
St. Cloud 253 405 20% (3,000) (3.0%) 7.4% $123,608 23% 3.4
Mississippi
Gulfport-Biloxi 1,909 2,699 49% (1,300) (1.2%) 8.8% $138,453 32% 5.3
Hattiesburg 50 100 9% (2,200) (3.7%) 8.7% $91,833 22% 0.7
Jackson 1,294 1,316 29% (900) (0.4%) 8.3% $133,544 27% 4.4
Pascagoula 734 739 48% (1,400) (2.4%) 10.1% $103,163 20% 1.1
Missouri
Columbia 511 609 26% (900) (1.0%) 5.8% $146,336 29% 2.5
Jefferson City 282 373 33% (2,100) (2.7%) 7.4% $103,567 19% 1.2
Joplin 124 148 20% (1,400) (1.7%) 7.7% $81,818 20% 1.5
Kansas City 1,868 3,399 18% (24,200) (2.4%) 8.6% $143,042 23% 2.5
Springfield 820 1,282 25% (900) (0.5%) 8.2% $118,935 25% 2.4
St. Joseph 130 154 36% 1,100 1.9% 8.6% $86,286 18% 1.6
St. Louis 4,135 5,277 29% (32,800) (2.5%) 9.8% $176,184 30% 5.7
Montana
Billings 461 542 37% (1,800) (2.3%) 5.2% $116,999 20% 0.0
Great Falls 133 177 55% (2,300) (6.7%) 5.9% $98,755 19% 0.0
Missoula 212 253 22% (2,200) (4.1%) 6.5% $162,854 32% 1.6
Nebraska
Lincoln 608 736 27% (3,900) (2.3%) 4.1% $134,067 20% 0.6
Omaha 3,182 3,485 53% (15,200) (3.3%) 5.0% $135,183 19% 1.0
Nevada
Carson City 17 33 5% (1,100) (3.7%) 12.7% $148,086 24% 0.0
Las Vegas 3,961 5,982 15% (65,300) (7.4%) 13.1% $135,000 20% 0.1
Reno 509 785 12% (12,600) (6.3%) 12.7% $170,000 25% 0.0
New Hampshire
Manchester 316 606 9% (600) (0.6%) 6.7% $221,360 24% 0.0
New Jersey
Atlantic City 519 545 14% (4,900) (3.5%) 13.9% $210,826 31% 3.4
Camden (D) 1,368 2,196 26% (12,500) (2.4%) 10.2% $189,195 22% 0.1
Edison (D) 2,583 3,258 13% (12,600) (1.3%) 9.0% $314,956 32% 3.3
Newark-Union (D) 1,352 2,502 27% (9,000) (0.9%) 9.3% $357,550 39% 2.1
Ocean City 259 399 16% (2,500) (7.5%) 16.4% $209,513 32% 1.1
Trenton 177 320 9% (7,100) (3.0%) 7.9% $251,652 28% 2.4
Vineland 230 241 33% 0 0.0% 14.2% $129,282 21% 0.0
New Mexico
Albuquerque 1,506 1,662 19% (13,600) (3.5%) 7.9% $202,514 37% 5.1
Farmington 201 227 39% (3,200) (6.2%) 9.4% $181,004 36% 4.9
Las Cruces 843 988 39% (1,600) (2.4%) 7.7% $100,984 24% 0.0
Santa Fe 104 104 8% (3,400) (5.4%) 6.6% $211,324 34% 0.1
New York
Albany 1,123 1,362 26% (9,000) (2.1%) 7.0% $192,607 31% 4.5
Binghamton 143 143 11% (2,800) (2.5%) 8.7% $115,205 23% 4.1
Buffalo 958 1,003 22% (10,800) (2.0%) 8.5% $114,428 22% 3.3
Elmira 47 50 17% (1,600) (4.0%) 8.8% $88,505 19% 3.1
Glens Falls 282 319 20% (1,300) (2.5%) 8.8% $151,209 29% 3.8
Ithaca 110 134 20% (100) (0.2%) 5.3% $149,385 29% 2.8
Kingston 186 232 16% (400) (0.7%) 7.8% $194,682 32% 2.2
Nassau (D) 1,183 1,306 11% (23,600) (1.9%) 7.0% $375,412 38% 5.0
New York (D) 1,391 9,360 23% (100,500) (2.0%) 9.9% $408,137 62% 3.8
Poughkeepsie 650 1,356 26% (5,300) (2.1%) 7.7% $208,816 28% 0.8
Rochester 1,246 3,823 74% (7,400) (1.5%) 8.0% $119,562 21% 3.8
Syracuse 707 877 26% (4,500) (1.4%) 8.2% $122,808 23% 4.5
Utica-Rome 153 181 14% (2,000) (1.5%) 7.8% $105,785 22% 2.7
North Carolina
Asheville 1,163 1,502 35% (4,600) (2.7%) 8.8% $165,817 35% 4.9
Burlington 465 585 29% (1,800) (3.1%) 12.1% $110,299 23% 0.9
Charlotte 4,664 6,733 27% (35,000) (4.2%) 12.1% $165,000 28% 5.0
Durham 1,388 2,286 35% (7,900) (2.8%) 7.7% $182,800 32% 3.3
Fayetteville 1,705 2,463 57% (2,000) (1.6%) 9.3% $103,391 21% 0.6
Goldsboro 221 261 38% (1,500) (3.4%) 9.2% $97,391 22% 0.7
Greensboro 1,398 2,156 34% (12,000) (3.4%) 11.4% $135,936 28% 1.8
Greenville 404 622 24% (2,200) (2.9%) 10.1% $102,414 23% 0.4
Hickory 631 637 26% (9,000) (5.9%) 14.8% $103,846 23% 1.6
Jacksonville 1,627 2,243 100% (1,400) (3.0%) 8.2% $124,963 25% 1.5
Raleigh-Cary 4,589 5,176 29% (8,100) (1.6%) 8.7% $184,300 27% 2.8
Rocky Mount 261 265 26% (2,200) (3.6%) 13.9% $89,987 20% 1.1
Wilmington 1,604 1,894 21% (3,000) (2.1%) 10.6% $205,710 40% 5.2
Winston-Salem 815 1,143 26% (3,400) (1.6%) 10.0% $117,105 23% 0.7
North Dakota
Bismarck 436 520 48% (500) (0.8%) 4.4% $154,128 22% 3.3
Fargo 821 1,590 56% (1,300) (1.1%) 4.0% $143,677 23% 2.5
Grand Forks 205 376 56% (600) (1.1%) 4.1% $118,532 21% 0.6
Ohio
Akron 666 724 18% (12,100) (3.7%) 10.7% $102,454 18% 1.8
Canton 325 385 25% (6,700) (4.1%) 12.4% $82,126 16% 1.3
Cincinnati 3,231 3,599 23% (31,000) (3.1%) 9.9% $134,950 20% 2.2
Cleveland 1,833 2,103 26% (40,800) (4.1%) 8.9% $95,858 17% 1.5
Columbus 2,625 4,159 24% (15,900) (1.7%) 9.0% $118,400 19% 0.7
Dayton 797 839 20% (12,200) (3.2%) 11.8% $98,383 18% 2.0
Lima 78 82 16% (2,500) (4.7%) 11.6% $87,547 17% 0.9
Mansfield 44 45 8% (2,100) (3.8%) 13.0% $85,305 18% 1.5
Sandusky 55 55 10% 800 2.2% 12.4% $110,987 20% 1.0
Springfield 63 63 9% (400) (0.8%) 11.1% $88,259 17% 0.5
Toledo 493 597 15% (8,400) (2.8%) 12.5% $79,168 15% 1.3
Youngstown 219 233 12% (12,800) (5.8%) 13.0% $63,656 14% 1.4
Oklahoma
Lawton 362 654 60% (100) (0.2%) 5.2% $87,648 16% 0.7
Oklahoma City 3,130 3,509 16% (12,200) (2.1%) 6.0% $135,007 22% 3.8
Tulsa 2,684 3,346 27% (10,400) (2.4%) 7.1% $132,651 21% 1.0
Oregon
Bend 364 392 9% (1,400) (2.2%) 14.5% $152,282 23% 0.0
Corvallis 61 63 8% (2,300) (6.1%) 7.1% $186,285 29% 0.7
Eugene 445 629 23% (4,200) (2.8%) 10.9% $194,006 36% 5.1
Medford 311 332 16% (3,600) (4.6%) 11.7% $150,141 29% 0.1
Portland 3,210 3,952 20% (47,400) (4.7%) 10.6% $228,500 33% 5.2
Salem 508 803 24% (7,200) (4.9%) 10.7% $164,888 28% 4.8
Pennsylvania
Allentown 1,349 1,557 29% (9,900) (3.0%) 9.4% $217,863 29% 3.7
Altoona 81 103 21% (1,400) (2.3%) 7.9% $96,700 18% 1.2
Erie 378 459 45% (5,400) (4.2%) 10.0% $93,385 18% 0.8
Harrisburg 1,248 1,346 36% (8,200) (2.5%) 7.6% $142,843 20% 0.5
Johnstown 74 223 60% (1,700) (2.8%) 9.4% $83,068 19% 2.3
Lancaster 977 1,143 32% (8,200) (3.6%) 7.4% $161,436 24% 1.8
Lebanon 372 372 44% (1,600) (3.3%) 7.0% $137,540 22% 1.6
Philadelphia (D) 3,055 3,953 22% (43,500) (2.3%) 8.2% $209,061 26% 2.5
Pittsburgh 3,078 3,427 48% (22,400) (2.0%) 7.8% $122,115 20% 1.3
Reading 397 417 19% (5,200) (3.1%) 9.1% $149,949 22% 3.7
Scranton 476 523 24% (5,500) (2.2%) 9.5% $119,300 21% 0.5
State College 308 339 31% 100 0.1% 6.0% $155,330 27% 1.2
Williamsport 77 149 28% (1,200) (2.3%) 9.7% $109,020 20% 1.0
York 799 875 28% (6,100) (3.4%) 8.6% $149,940 22% 1.3
Rhode Island
Providence 1,222 1,491 13% (21,800) (4.0%) 12.5% $208,451 32% 0.4
South Carolina
Anderson 247 247 13% (700) (1.2%) 13.4% $98,287 21% 0.8
Charleston 3,015 3,241 30% (3,900) (1.3%) 10.2% $172,000 30% 1.9
Columbia 2,651 3,226 40% (3,200) (0.9%) 9.8% $125,000 23% 3.3
Florence 349 415 32% (500) (0.6%) 12.9% $109,876 25% 2.1
Greenville 1,460 1,515 27% (5,700) (1.8%) 10.7% $127,900 25% 5.1
Myrtle Beach 1,461 1,701 14% (1,200) (1.1%) 14.8% $162,784 34% 3.3
Spartanburg 604 632 23% (4,900) (3.9%) 12.7% $117,320 24% 4.5
Sumter 378 410 45% (1,100) (3.1%) 14.0% $95,211 22% 0.8
South Dakota
Rapid City 413 445 32% (1,800) (3.0%) 5.1% $120,457 19% 1.0
Sioux Falls 1,006 1,607 64% (3,800) (2.8%) 4.7% $130,697 18% 2.4
Tennessee
Chattanooga 1,106 1,211 32% (7,300) (3.0%) 9.1% $124,251 26% 2.3
Clarksville 1,322 1,496 47% (1,800) (2.2%) 10.5% $97,913 20% 0.8
Cleveland 213 295 31% (800) (2.1%) 9.9% $105,800 25% 2.0
Jackson 249 249 22% (1,900) (3.2%) 11.0% $87,241 20% 1.0
Johnson City 474 537 37% (1,200) (1.5%) 9.7% $108,600 27% 1.5
Kingsport 486 515 34% (3,900) (3.3%) 9.5% $105,503 25% 1.7
Knoxville 1,387 1,908 30% (8,800) (2.7%) 8.7% $140,937 30% 3.5
Memphis 1,641 1,913 17% (15,300) (2.5%) 10.3% $116,988 24% 2.5
Morristown 240 264 35% (2,000) (4.1%) 12.5% $101,831 25% 1.1
Nashville 4,186 5,373 29% (25,900) (3.5%) 9.4% $132,000 23% 1.7
Texas
Abilene 207 207 10% (1,700) (2.5%) 6.0% $113,300 24% 5.4
Amarillo 600 636 17% (2,200) (2.0%) 5.3% $131,200 25% 5.2
Austin 6,923 8,787 33% (2,300) (0.3%) 6.9% $174,800 26% 3.3
Beaumont 2,480 3,022 100% (6,000) (3.7%) 10.7% $163,800 32% 7.0
Brownsville 1,029 1,065 27% (2,000) (1.6%) 11.1% $101,700 29% 0.0
College Station 784 894 25% (3,400) (3.7%) 5.9% $151,900 34% 4.7
Corpus Christi 991 1,092 18% (6,000) (3.3%) 7.8% $125,900 26% 4.3
Dallas (D) 10,080 14,043 19% (41,100) (2.0%) 8.0% $141,000 21% 1.1
El Paso 2,737 3,288 51% (3,600) (1.3%) 9.2% $130,700 32% 5.1
Fort Worth (D) 5,532 6,778 18% (7,800) (0.9%) 8.0% $130,348 21% 2.3
Houston 22,698 26,714 36% (90,700) (3.5%) 8.3% $142,900 22% 3.0
Killeen 2,258 2,366 52% (1,900) (1.5%) 7.0% $110,544 20% 1.8
Laredo 632 755 32% (1,000) (1.1%) 8.6% $84,958 21% 0.8
Longview 174 202 13% (2,700) (2.8%) 7.8% $116,200 24% 3.7
Lubbock 789 1,034 25% (1,000) (0.8%) 5.4% $108,100 22% 0.7
McAllen 2,836 3,221 35% 1,800 0.8% 11.7% $93,800 26% 0.8
Midland 333 333 9% (2,200) (3.1%) 5.4% $122,613 21% 3.2
Odessa 232 232 11% (1,700) (2.6%) 8.3% $138,000 28% 5.0
San Angelo 180 515 33% (1,000) (2.2%) 6.3% $85,000 18% 0.4
San Antonio 5,532 6,319 28% (8,800) (1.1%) 6.8% $139,000 26% 4.3
Sherman 83 101 9% (800) (1.8%) 8.3% $77,900 15% 2.2
Texarkana 300 372 44% (1,200) (2.1%) 6.5% $79,534 17% 0.7
Tyler 202 256 9% (1,900) (2.0%) 8.0% $138,900 26% 5.0
Victoria 119 119 7% (2,000) (3.9%) 7.7% $110,000 21% 1.8
Waco 453 671 22% (2,200) (2.1%) 6.9% $117,800 26% 0.0
Wichita Falls 212 250 28% (1,600) (2.7%) 7.5% $87,200 18% 0.2
Utah
Logan 378 466 33% (1,800) (3.4%) 4.4% $118,996 19% 0.0
Ogden-Clearfield 1,544 1,676 33% (6,600) (3.4%) 6.6% $129,735 16% 0.0
Provo-Orem 1,311 1,589 25% (6,500) (3.5%) 6.0% $137,825 18% 0.0
Salt Lake City 1,701 4,153 34% (26,300) (4.2%) 6.2% $200,583 26% 2.4
St. George 591 598 16% (2,500) (5.0%) 8.6% $129,237 19% 0.0
Virginia
Charlottesville 676 713 27% (500) (0.5%) 5.4% $205,672 28% 0.2
Danville 108 133 25% 400 1.0% 11.8% $84,750 21% 1.0
Harrisonburg 456 607 47% 200 0.3% 5.7% $163,984 28% 0.7
Lynchburg 595 635 35% 800 0.7% 7.2% $133,140 24% 0.3
Richmond 2,684 3,302 29% (12,800) (2.1%) 7.8% $192,700 29% 3.4
Roanoke 438 440 23% (1,500) (0.9%) 7.3% $139,768 24% 1.0
Virginia Beach 3,061 5,356 23% (1,600) (0.2%) 6.9% $196,401 30% 3.3
Winchester 354 366 21% (1,500) (2.8%) 7.7% $138,618 22% 0.0
Washington
Bellingham 357 402 16% (3,000) (3.6%) 8.3% $199,863 37% 3.7
Bremerton 489 497 19% (3,000) (3.6%) 7.6% $240,000 35% 5.6
Kennewick 1,118 1,142 35% 3,700 4.0% 8.1% $168,598 29% 5.2
Longview 135 135 19% (2,500) (6.9%) 13.3% $129,573 25% 0.8
Mount Vernon 250 275 24% (900) (2.0%) 10.8% $177,223 30% 0.9
Olympia 1,192 1,448 45% (1,600) (1.6%) 7.6% $222,950 32% 5.9
Seattle (D) 4,060 5,901 21% (48,000) (3.4%) 9.0% $340,074 44% 6.1
Spokane 871 1,412 32% (3,900) (1.8%) 9.3% $167,500 31% 5.7
Tacoma (D) 1,237 1,944 29% (2,700) (1.0%) 9.5% $206,544 31% 4.0
Wenatchee 287 301 27% (1,400) (3.6%) 9.4% $176,347 33% 1.6
Yakima 334 477 39% (400) (0.5%) 11.0% $162,233 32% 5.2
West Virginia
Charleston 271 298 35% (2,000) (1.3%) 7.4% $128,933 28% 4.1
Huntington 111 123 19% (2,800) (2.4%) 7.8% $85,734 21% 1.3
Morgantown 34 81 31% 600 1.0% 5.4% $119,119 26% 0.6
Parkersburg 115 127 29% (1,300) (1.8%) 9.6% $86,881 19% 1.1
Weirton 70 70 37% (2,500) (5.3%) 13.6% $71,869 17% 1.1
Wheeling 1 1 0% (500) (0.7%) 9.5% $75,780 18% 1.2
Wisconsin
Appleton 444 483 22% (2,700) (2.4%) 7.8% $119,562 19% 3.8
Eau Claire 309 409 29% (2,000) (2.5%) 7.0% $109,795 20% 2.3
Fond Du Lac 83 168 27% (1,800) (3.9%) 8.6% $114,082 20% 1.8
Green Bay 562 701 23% (3,500) (2.1%) 7.7% $138,033 23% 3.0
Janesville 224 281 22% (2,700) (4.2%) 11.0% $109,324 19% 2.6
La Crosse 241 293 35% (1,700) (2.3%) 6.4% $115,658 22% 2.7
Madison 808 1,439 24% (6,300) (1.9%) 5.8% $215,894 32% 5.2
Milwaukee 887 1,406 16% (46,900) (5.7%) 8.6% $201,852 34% 5.6
Oshkosh-Neenah 248 392 27% (1,600) (1.7%) 7.0% $110,733 19% 1.3
Racine 203 358 28% (3,500) (4.5%) 9.9% $136,994 23% 4.9
Sheboygan 89 140 19% (2,600) (4.2%) 8.5% $123,739 22% 4.0
Wausau 239 339 24% (2,500) (3.6%) 8.9% $114,050 19% 1.9
Wyoming
Casper 197 268 34% (2,600) (6.4%) 8.2% $113,038 19% 0.5
Cheyenne 179 397 45% (1,400) (3.2%) 8.2% $112,803 17% 0.1
* The government defines metro areas and includes metro divisions within some areas. In these instances, we report at the more detailed division level, because that is what most of our clients use for decision making. For example, we report on the Los Angeles and Orange County divisions separately, rather than the Los Angeles MSA, which includes both Los Angeles and Orange counties. We also use the more colloquial names used by business people, so we refer to the "Santa Ana-Anaheim-Irvine" division as "Orange County." For the government definitions, visit: http://www.census.gov/population/www/metroareas/lists/2007/List1.txt

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