Contact: Dan Stern, dan@ruralhome.org, 202-842-8600 ext. 137

Rural Poverty Decreases, Yet Remains Higher than the U.S. Poverty Rate

Washington, DC, Sep. 16, 2014– The number of rural Americans living in poverty decreased last year, according to a new report from the U.S. Census Bureau. Overall, the official poverty rate for the United States was 14.5 percent in 2013 – a decline from the 2012 level of 15 percent. Released today, the U.S. Census Bureau’s annual report, Income and Poverty in the United States: 2013, estimates that 45.3 million people had incomes below the poverty line in 2013, making this the third year without a statistically significant change in the number of people in poverty at the national level.

The official poverty rate in rural areas (persons living outside of metropolitan areas), was 16.1 percent, more than 1.5 percentage points higher than the national level. The poverty rate outside metro areas was down from 17.7 percent in 2012. Overall, 7.6 million people outside metropolitan areas had incomes below the poverty line in 2013, a statistically significant decrease from the 2012 level of 8.5 million.

“These higher poverty rates in rural areas, combined with low and stagnant incomes, continue to hinder many rural families’ ability to access quality and affordable housing,” says Moises Loza, Executive Director of the Housing Assistance Council (HAC).

For more information, download HAC’s Rural Research Note on the Census report and rural poverty.

About the Housing Assistance Council
HAC, founded in 1971, is a nonprofit corporation that supports the development of rural low-income housing nationwide. HAC provides technical housing services, loans from a revolving fund, housing program and policy assistance, research and demonstration projects, and training and information services. HAC is an equal opportunity lender.

###