Regional Matters

While the recent decline in rural homeownership affordability has challenged prospective buyers, many existing rural homeowners and renters are also burdened by their housing costs.

HEERF dollars helped community colleges and their students withstand pandemic disruptions. But schools that used the money for revenue replacement or other recurring items may have difficulty operating in a post-HEERF world.

Although our surveys show signs that the labor market may be cooling, many Fifth District firms continue to report difficulty finding workers with the right skill sets.

Population loss and aging homes have left the city of Baltimore with an abandoned housing problem that policymakers and community leaders continue to address.

How do state economies behave differently through the ups and downs of national business cycles? Do some states tend to enter recessions sooner (or later) than others? Are some states more recession-proof (or prone) than others?

After two years of tightness, many labor market measures have made notable progress toward reaching more normal levels. But we might still have some time before we see the same for wage growth.

After almost three years, pandemic-era SNAP enhancements ended this spring. Another support — the pause on federal student loan payments — is ending this fall. Are households ready?

Large metro areas aren't the only places to see recent declines in homeownership affordability. Home prices have grown faster than household income in nonmetropolitan areas, too, contributing to affordability challenges in these communities.

The labor market has surprised economists and forecasters with its resilience. Data from our business surveys indicate that the Fifth District labor market may be cooling.

Changes to the urban area criteria used for the 2020 census data have resulted in shifts in the rural-urban population distribution in parts of the Fifth District.