Search Results
Briefing
The Pandemic, Child Care and Women’s Labor Force Participation
The pandemic has changed how households work, spend and care for children. In this Economic Brief, we highlight economic research that examines the patterns seen in women's work experiences in particular. We look at both the pandemic and, more generally, how shocks to the economy affect women's work decisions. Throughout, we will try to connect what we observe to households' broader economic environments and will emphasize — in the case of the pandemic — the role of away-from-home child care.
Briefing
Commuting Patterns and Economic Connectivity in the Fifth District
One way of measuring economic connectivity across locations is by examining the commuting behavior of residents. This article explores how connected counties in the Fifth District are by focusing on commuting.
Discussion Paper
How Connected Are Counties in the Fifth District?
Access to expanded employment opportunities and local goods and services is an important factor explaining why certain rural areas are able to retain people and grow. However, this access is far from uniform across rural areas. One way of assessing the economic linkages across areas is by examining intercounty commuting flows. This post classifies rural areas based on commuting flows and uses this information to establish the degree of spatial interactions or connectivity across areas.
Journal Article
District Digest: Who's in Need?
Both governments and community-based organizations administer means-tested programs that serve populations in financial need. Some programs, such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) or Housing Choice Vouchers, provide immediate access to necessary resources. Others, such as Pell Grants, provide resources so beneficiaries can access opportunities that will improve their long-term earning potential.
Briefing
Commuting Patterns and Characteristics of Fifth District Counties
This article extends our previous work on the categorization of counties in the Fifth District based on their economic connectivity. Using commuting patterns to proxy for connectivity, we group counties into four categories. We next compare our classification with the USDA/ERS RUCC classification system. Finally, we characterize each category using different socioeconomic indicators. We claim that the information conveyed by this study is relevant when designing regionally targeted policies.
Discussion Paper
Recent Trends in Fifth District Housing Market Indicators
There is evidence that the tight housing markets of the past few years are starting to loosen, with increased supply and falling prices. However, many Americans still struggle to buy a home. Between the fall of 2020 and the summer of 2022, home price growth accelerated in the United States and in all Fifth District states after being relatively steady for a decade. Using the CoreLogic Home Price Index, price increases were most dramatic in North Carolina and South Carolina, where year-over-year increases reached historic highs of 25 percent. While price increases remain high relative to the ...
Discussion Paper
The Pandemic’s Toll on Minority Women in the Labor Force.
Discussion Paper
From Good Bones to Healthy Homes: Housing Quality in the Rural Fifth District
We've previously explored how rural Fifth District households encounter housing affordability challenges, finding low-to-moderate income (LMI) households to be at greatest risk. A home's quality can also profoundly affect residents' well-being. Resolving housing quality issues caused by repair needs can be quite costly. If left unaddressed, housing quality issues can lead to stress or chronic illness, which in turn can hurt adults' workforce activity and children's educational outcomes. As with affordability, not all households are equally likely to face housing quality challenges. In the ...
Journal Article
Employment Barriers in the Rural Fifth District
In Virginia, 75 percent of working-age adults are employed, in line with the national average of 74 percent. But there are significant disparities across geographies. In Loudoun County, Va., in the Washington, D.C., metro area, the share is 84.1 percent. On the other side of the state, in Lee County, just 48.2 percent of working-age adults are employed. This is true of many socioeconomic indicators: Aggregation is necessary to understand broad outcomes, but with aggregation, we lose important geographic distinctions and, thus, the opportunity to identify both challenges and solutions. This is ...
Journal Article
Housing the Workforce in the Rural Fifth District
Although real estate is often less costly in rural areas than in urban areas, many low- and middle-income households in rural areas struggle with housing expense. There are multiple reasons why rural households end up financially constrained by housing costs. First, incomes tend to be lower in rural areas. Second, there are limited available units — multifamily or single family — in rural areas for reasons that reflect the unique challenges of the rural housing landscape.