Surprise — rural Iowans wealthier than urban counterparts

Rural Iowans are substantially wealthier than city-dwelling Iowans, according to a recent analysis by an Iowa State University sociologist and small-town expert.

In 2015 the median household income of rural Iowans, defined as those living in the countryside or in towns with fewer than 2,500 residents, stood at $60,223 — almost 11 percent higher, or $8,500 more, than the $51,705 median household income of urban Iowans.

'Absolutely I was surprised. I would have expected the opposite,' said ISU associate sociology professor David Peters, who analyzed 2015 U.S. Census Bureau data.

'I would have thought rural income would have stagnated and fallen along with farm income in the last couple of years,' said Peters, who coordinates the Iowa Small Town Poll, an ISU survey that gauges quality of life in rural Iowa.

The data contradict a common narrative that rural Iowa is beset by social and economic woes, Peters said.

That myth was perpetrated by University of Iowa journalism professor Stephen Bloom, who wrote in an Atlantic online article in 2011: 'Those who stay in rural Iowa are often the elderly waiting to die, those too timid (or lacking in educated (sic)) to peer around the bend for better opportunities, an assortment of waste-toids and meth addicts with pale skin and rotted teeth, or those who quixotically believe, like Little Orphan Annie, that 'The sun'll come out tomorrow.''

That myth gained a lot more traction on the east and west coasts than it did in Iowa, Peters said.

More recently Keokuk freelance photographer Cody Weber has purported to document what he sees as the decline of small Iowa towns, as he's said in various interviews, by posting photos of dilapidated buildings on his Forgotten Iowa website.

Not only do rural Iowans out-earn their urban counterparts — their incomes have been about 10 percent higher than the incomes of rural residents of other states, according to the analysis.

Moreover, incomes in rural Iowa since 2005 have grown faster (9.6 percent) than the incomes of urban Iowans (3.7 percent), faster than the incomes of rural residents of other states (0.8 percent) and faster than the national rate of growth (2.2 percent).

Peters said he hopes to pinpoint some of the reasons for rural Iowa's surprisingly good economic performance through questions asked in the Iowa Small Town Poll, which will administer surveys every two years rather than every 10 years as in the past.

Questionnaires soon will be sent to residents of the same 125 small Iowa towns that have participated in 1994, 2004 and 2014, he said.

In the meantime, Peters offers several possible explanations for small towns' financial success.

One factor, he said, is that farm income, which has declined in recent years, makes up no more than 20 percent of rural Iowans' income.

'The link between the farm economy and the rural economy is weaker than at any time in the state's history,' he said.

Another factor, he said, is that many small towns are within easy commutes of cities with good employment opportunities.

In Atkins, for example, a Benton County community just west of Cedar Rapids, the median household income is $86,250 and the median home value is $199,800. In Shueyville, which lies between Cedar Rapids and Iowa City, the comparable numbers are $95,208 and $305,700. In Walford, just south and west of Cedar Rapids, the comparable numbers ae $92,303 and $211,800.

'People with good jobs are moving out to small towns for good schools and a good quality of life. They want their 10 acres of heaven,' Peters said.

Improved availability of high-speed broadband computer service has enabled rural residents to start businesses and to work more from home, according to Peters.

'Self-employment and entrepreneurship are really high in rural areas,' he said.

The Census Bureau data show 9.8 percent of rural Iowans work for themselves, which compares with a 4.2 percent self-employment rate for urban Iowans.

In contrast with urban Iowans, rural residents also have:

• A lower unemployment rate — 2.1 percent versus 3.2 percent

• A lower poverty rate — 8.1 percent versus 14.4 percent

• A lower rate of public assistance — 1.6 percent versus 2.5 percent.

In general demographic terms:

• Rural Iowans are older than their urban counterparts — their median age is 43.7 versus 35.5 — and more of them are white — 94.6 percent versus 82.4 percent.

• Fewer rural Iowans are foreign born — 1.7 percent versus 6.5 percent.

• Fewer rural Iowans are hampered in their ability to speak English — 1.3 percent versus 4.5 percent.

• Fewer have never attended high school — 7.1 percent versus 9.0 percent.

• More rural Iowans hold two-year degrees — 12.4 percent versus 10.7 percent — but more urban residents have a four-year degree — 30.2 percent versus 21.3 percent.

• Rural Iowans have a higher percentage of homeownership — 81.6 versus 64.6 — and rural renters pay less per month — $613 versus $741.

• The median value of rural homes is slightly higher than the comparable figure for urban homes — $136,700 versus $135,800.