Income

As Outdoor Recreation Drives Western Economies, It's Also Driving Up The Rent

By • May 20, 2020

Everyone knows that living in the Rockies can get expensive. Headwaters Economics wanted to know why. The non-profit published new research this week that examines what causes housing to become so expensive in places where outdoor recreation is a main economic driver.

"I Came Here To Be Normal": The Influx Of Billionaires In The American West

By • Mar 13, 2020
Justin Farrell

A book out this month takes an unusual look at the role of the rich in American West, examining it through interviews with the super wealthy living in Teton County.

Wyoming Public Radio's Melodie Edwards sat down with author and sociologist Justin Farrell to talk about what he learned while researching Billionaire Wilderness: The Ultra-Wealthy and the Remaking of the American West.

New Book Studies Sociological Impacts Of Super Wealthy In The West

By • Mar 12, 2020
Princeton University Press

Compared to elsewhere in the country, the disparity between the rich and the poor is widest in Teton County, and a new book takes a sociological look at the problem.

Stagnant Wages And A Rising Cost Of Living Make Things Difficult For Wyoming Families

By • Feb 28, 2020
Wyoming Women's Foundation

The Self-Sufficiency Standard for Wyoming 2020 recently came out. It's a study that takes into account all kinds of factors for working families, including how many adults are in your household, the number of children, or which county you live in. And then it works like a calculator to determine the amount of income required to meet basic needs at a minimally adequate level.

Mountain West Sees High Personal Income Growth Rates

By • Oct 3, 2019

Personal income is on the rise across the country, and some of the biggest increases are in Mountain West states, according to data published last week by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.

Wyoming's Personal Income Increases

By • Sep 25, 2019
money
CC0 Public Domain

Wyoming's personal income has increased by 6 percent in the second quarter of this year. The increase is higher than both the region and the rest of the country.

In The West, Home Sales Are Down But Prices Remain High

By • Aug 8, 2018

This summer, the housing market was expected to be extremely competitive, with lots of buyers vying for a limited number of homes. But it turns out, the housing market, including in our region, may finally be cooling down.

Lawrence Yun, chief economist with the National Association of Realtors, says home prices have been rising too fast -- much faster than people’s incomes.

'Welfare Reform 2.0' May Hit Mountain West Hard

By • Apr 27, 2018

U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson's recent proposal to triple rent for the lowest income households is part of what’s being called "Welfare Reform 2.0." This change to federal assistance could have a big impact on our growing region.

Boise, Denver See Widening Gap Between Rich And Poor

By • Apr 23, 2018

A new Bloomberg analysis looks at the widening gap between the rich and the poor in cities across the nation. 


Wyoming's Personal Income Drops

By • Mar 30, 2017
money
CC0 Public Domain

Wyoming’s personal income in 2016 declined by 1.7 percent, but the fourth quarter improvement has some believing things have stabilized. Economist Jim Robinson with Wyoming’s Economic Analysis Division said the economy was in very bad shape last summer, but there were signs of life at the end of the year, which gives him some minor optimism. But Robinson said that low oil and gas prices will keep that optimism in check.

“I think the optimism right now is that it won’t get any worse and it looks like it will stay like this for a while longer.”

Wyoming Income Ranking 7th In Nation

By Samuel Sanders • Mar 30, 2016

Wyoming's average personal income of just over $55,000 ranked seventh in the nation in 2015. Wyoming workers earned over $10,000 higher than the average in the region.

However, wages decreased by $37 million in the fourth quarter of 2015, compared to the third. According to the state's Economic Analysis Division, the construction sector has had the largest impact on income growth, while mining and farming have seen the biggest decline.

Economist Jim Robinson says despite recent downward trends in the energy industry, he expects things to stabilize.

Inequality In The Equality State: Disparities Abound In Wyoming's Renowned Ski Town

By Aaron Schrank • Jan 9, 2015
Aaron Schrank

    

Income and wealth disparities in the U.S. are the most pronounced they’ve been in decades. Perhaps nowhere is the gap between luxury and poverty more apparent than in Jackson. The small ski town sits in the county with the highest average income in the country. But it’s also home to a growing number of Mexican immigrants who come to work in Jackson’s tourism economy. Teton County residents boast a median household income of $72,000, but for immigrant households, it’s just $26,000. That inequity has repercussions for Jackson's youth.