Poverty and Income

Income Levels
Poverty Rates
Income levels by subregion
Components of Household Income

Income and poverty rates are used to help gauge the overall health and well-being of a
community. Read about how we measure poverty and income

Income Levels

Income Levels and Federal Poverty Rate

All figures below are based on a family of four, this family size is the most commonly cited published format.

Median Income

The 2007 median family income for the Seattle-Bellevue-Everett PMSA (Primary Metropolitan Statistical Area): $85,828
80% of Family median income: $68,662
50% of Family median income: $42,914
30% of Family median income: $25,748
2007 Median household income: $67,010

Federal Poverty Level

Federal Poverty level for 2008: $21,834
200% of the Federal Poverty in 2008: $43,668

Download Data: | Sources: US Census Bureau Sources, Select download data for weblinks

Poverty Rates

The poverty rate in King County was 9.8% in 2008 with 177,145 individuals below poverty level. Analyzing the data by age or ethnicity/race shows the wide disparities existing in King County.

Families with children have much higher rates of poverty with 13.2% for children ages 5 and young and 11.3% for children 6-17.
Poverty rates for the white population category are 7.6% representing the lowest rate in King County
African American/Black poverty rates are 28.0% with American Indian/Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander just behind at 25.3% and 24.1%.

Download Data | Source: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 2005-2007

Income levels by Subregion

In order to grasp the breadth of incomes represented within a region, the data is also published showing the percent of households recorded at different income levels.

South King County and Seattle both show greater than 50% of their households earn less than $49,999
In contrast, just under 40% of East County households earn $100,000

Download Data | Source: Claritas 2008 Update (Census Tract Level)

Components of Household Income

Wages and salary are the largest contributors to household income in King County, accounting for 77.0%. Additional components of the total income are shown below with their sub-regional distribution.

Components of Aggregate Household Income Excluding Wages and Salaries by Subregion
	Nonfarm Self-Employment	Interest, Dividends, Or Net Rental	Social Security	Aggregate Supplemental Security	Public Assistance	Retirement	Other Types of Income
North	6.8%	7.8%	3.3%	0.2%	0.1%	3.8%	1.4%
East	5.9%	9.8%	2.5%	0.1%	0.1%	3.5%	1.1%
South	4.1%	5.1%	3.8%	0.3%	0.2%	4.3%	1.7%
Seattle	6.5%	9.9%	3.6%	0.4%	0.2%	3.7%	1.4%

Download Data | Source: Claritas 2008 Update (Census Tract Level)

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2007 - United Way of King County - Questions and Comments?