The U.S. Census Bureau recently released the latest state-by-state data tracking the percent of homeownership across the country. We took a closer look at the historical data since 2003.
The bureau calculates each state's "homeownership rate" as the number of owner-occupied housing units (households in which their owners reside) out of the total number of occupied housing units (households that aren't vacant).
As the map shows, homeownership rates for each state range between roughly 43 and 81 percent across 2003 to 2013.
Last year, the homeownership rate nationwide was nearly two-thirds (65.1 percent). That's actually the lowest it's been since 1995, when the national rate was 64.7 percent. For at least the last three decades, the rate has hovered in the 60s.
In all states other than D.C., at least half of households were homeowners (D.C. had the lowest homeownership rate in the country, at 44.6 percent, which never grew above 50 during the 11-year period.)
New York, California, Nevada, and Hawaii all had less than 60 percent (the lowest rates in the country) for the past four years. On the other side of the spectrum, more than three out of four occupied households in West Virginia were owner-occupied in 2013—the highest rate in the country last year.
In fact, West Virginia had the highest rate ever during the 11 years, at 81.3 percent, in 2005. D.C. had the lowest rate during the period, 43.0 percent, in 2003.
Top GIF by Jess Rubenstein.
