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Residents of Midwest, Mountain West see biggest pay bumps
Residents of some Midwestern and Mountain states gained the most income per capita during the past four years, a Stateline analysis shows, as competition for workers drove up wages in relatively affordable places to live. With the COVID-19 pandemic now in the nation’s rearview mirror, Stateline’s analysis offers a more complete understanding of how some […]
Death rates for people under 40 have skyrocketed. Blame fentanyl.
A new Stateline analysis shows that U.S. residents under 40 were relatively unscathed by COVID-19 in the pandemic but fell victim to another killer – accidental drug overdose deaths. Death rates in the age group were up by nearly a third in 2021 over 2018, and last year were still 21% higher. COVID-19 was a […]
We’re older than we used to be, especially in these states
The median age rose in almost every state last year, census estimates show, continuing a long-term trend that is pushing states to prepare for aging populations. Seventeen states had median ages of more than 40 in 2022, according to new U.S. Census Bureau estimates of the age at which half of residents are older and […]
Low fertility rates, high housing prices mean fewer children in most states
Thirty-five states have fewer children than they did five years ago, a situation caused by declining birth rates nationwide, but also by young families migrating across state borders in search of cheaper housing. Even in the 15 states that gained children, all but North Dakota experienced greater growth in the adult population, meaning children now […]
Gun deaths drive historic spike in child mortality rates
After decades of steady improvement, the death rate of America’s children and teens shot up between 2019 and 2021 — and COVID-19 wasn’t the reason. Gun-related deaths represented the largest share of the increase — by far. According to an analysis of the most recent death certificate data from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, […]
The nation’s vacant homes present an opportunity — and a problem
With construction costs for new homes and interest rates soaring, vacant housing is drawing more attention as a shortcut to quickly getting more units on the market. But whether vacant homes are a curse or an opportunity depends on where you live. As housing affordability plummets and rents rise, putting more families with low incomes at risk […]
Investors bought nearly a quarter of U.S. homes last year, driving up prices
Investors bought nearly a quarter of U.S. single-family homes that sold last year, often driving up rents for suburban families in the process. The issue is especially acute in some Sun Belt states amid evidence that investors often can outbid other buyers, keeping starter homes out of the hands of would-be owners, especially suburban Black […]
Kalispell one of the fast-growing cities as people flocked to more rural places after COVID
Bend, Oregon, is in the middle of nowhere—two-and-a-half hours from Eugene over a mountain pass that can be treacherous even in springtime. And that’s what people like about it. “People were already coming here in hordes, and then it just exploded in the pandemic,” said Lynne McConnell, the city’s housing director. “More would be coming […]