Clark County residents had better incomes on average than their national counterparts, but they also paid more for rent and mortgages, according to new data released by the U.S. Census Bureau.
Clark County’s median household income was $58,225, about $5,000 a year more than the national median of $53,046, according to estimates based on the Census’ five-year American Community Survey, released Thursday.
But residents also paid more to live here, with an average monthly mortgage of $1,701, compared with the national average of $1,540; and an average monthly rent of $941, compared with the national average of $904.
Wage disparity between men and women also continued to be evident both locally and nationally.
In Clark County, men made an average of $53,671 a year, while women made an average of $40,388 — about $13,000 less.
Nationally, men made an average of $49,087 a year, while women made an average of $38,635 — about $10,000 less.
Of wage earners in Clark County, about 9 percent made less than $15,000 a year and 9 percent made more than $150,000 a year. Nationally, about 13 percent of the population made less than $15,000 a year and 10 percent made more than $150,000 a year.
The full survey, which is online at factfinder2.census.gov and www.census.gov, provides social and demographic information for a wide array of communities throughout the country. The five years of data collected between 2009 and 2013 provide statistics on a range of economic, housing and social topics.
Here are some other local and national highlights:
Population
Household size in Clark County was very similar to the national average.
The total population in the county during the five-year period was 432,500, making up about 158,900 households. An average household had 2.7 people, with 36 percent including one or more child younger than 18 and 23 percent including one or more senior age 65 and older.
The national population for the time period was 311.5 million. An average household had 2.6 people, with 33 percent including one or more child younger than 18, and 25 percent including one or more senior.
There are also a few more grandparents in the county supporting their grandchildren.
In Clark County, 8,500 grandparents lived with their grandchildren, with 42 percent of them financially caring for their grandkids. Nationally, 7 million grandparents lived with their grandchildren, with 39 percent providing for them.
The age range of people living in Clark County was also similar to the national average.
The median age in the county was 37, with about 26 percent of the population younger than 18 and 12 percent age 65 and older. Nationally, the median age was 37.3, with about 24 percent of the population younger than 18 and 13 percent age 65 and older.
Poverty
Local poverty numbers were a bit below the national average.
About 12 percent of Clark County residents lived in poverty during the survey period, with 16 percent of them children younger than 18 and 8 percent seniors age 65 and older.
Nationally, about 15 percent of the population lived in poverty during that time, with 21 percent of them children younger than 18 and 9 percent of them age 65 and older.
Ethnicity
A much lower number of Clark County residents, 33 percent, were born in Washington, compared with the 59 percent of people nationally that live in the state where they were born. That statistic may be due to Southwest Washington’s proximity to Portland.
About 90 percent of those living in Clark County during the sample period were born in the United States, and about 10 percent were foreign-born. Nationally, about 87 percent of the population was born in the U.S, with about 13 percent foreign-born.
The county’s biggest foreign-born populations were Europeans and Asians. Nationally, the largest groups were Latin Americans and Asians.
Of the foreign-born population in Clark County, 34.9 percent was European, 32 percent Asian, 24 percent Latin American, 4.8 percent Northern American, 2.2 percent African and 2 percent Pacific Islander.
Of the foreign-born population nationally, 52.5 percent was Latin American, 28.8 percent Asian, 11.9 percent European, 4.1 percent African, 2 percent Northern American and 0.6 percent Pacific Islander.
Non-English languages also differed.
In Clark County, for people age 5 and older, 14 percent spoke a language other than English at home. Of those, 35 percent spoke Spanish and 65 percent spoke some other language (including Asian and Indo-European languages such as Russian).
Nationally, 21 percent spoke a language other than English at home. Of those, 62 percent spoke Spanish and 38 percent spoke some other language.
There are also about 13 percent more white people in Clark County than the national average.
Of those in Clark County reporting to be only one race, about 89 percent were white, 2 percent were black or African American, 1 percent were American Indian or Alaska native, 4 percent were Asian, 1 percent were native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander and 3 percent were some other race. About 4 percent reported being two or more races.
About 8 percent of the population said they were Hispanic, which was not included in the Census’ breakdown of races.
Nationally, of those reporting one race, 76 percent were white, 13 percent were black or African American, 1 percent were American Indian or Alaska native, 5 percent were Asian, less than 0.5 percent were native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander and 5 percent were some other race. About 3 percent reported being two or more races.
About 17 percent of the population said they were Hispanic.
Education
High school graduation rates were higher in the county than the national average.
In Clark County, 91 percent of people age 25 and older had at least graduated from high school and 26 percent had a bachelor’s degree or higher. About 9 percent didn’t complete high school. There were 114,800 students enrolled in school in the county from 2009 to 2013.
Nationally, 86 percent of those age 25 or older had graduated from high school, and 29 percent had a bachelor’s degree or higher. About 14 percent didn’t finish high school.
Employment
Employment numbers in the county were fairly similar to the national average.
In Clark County, 57 percent of the population 16 and older were employed, with 35 percent not in the labor force. About 80 percent of the workforce were employed by private companies, 14 percent had government jobs and 6 percent were self-employed.
Regarding the three top Clark County employment sectors, education, health care and social workers made up 21.3 percent of the workforce; retail and trade workers made up 12.1 percent; and manufacturing workers made up 12 percent.
The county had a higher level of transportation, warehouse and utility employment — at 7.6 percent — than the national level of 4.9 percent.
Nationally, 58 percent of the population age 16 and older were employed, with about 36 percent not in the labor force. About 79 percent worked for private companies, 15 percent had government jobs and 6 percent were self-employed.
In the top-three employment sectors nationwide, education, heath care and social workers made up 23.2 percent of the workforce; retail and trade workers made up 11.6 percent; and manufacturing workers made up 10.5 percent.
