Midwest Information office

    The percentage of the total budget spent by a typical
Minneapolis-St. Paul household for food, housing, and transportation
was 60.9 percent-below the 65 percent spent by the average U.S.
household.  (See table 1.)  Among three other selected major
metropolitan areas in the Midwest chosen for comparison, households
in Chicago (66 percent), Detroit (65.8 percent), and Milwaukee (64.6
percent) all had expenditure shares for these major categories close
to the national average.

     This report contains annual data averaged over a two-year
period-2002 and 2003.  The data are from the Consumer Expenditure
Survey, which is collected on an ongoing basis by the U.S. Census
Bureau for the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).  The Consumer
Expenditure Survey is the only national survey that provides both
complete data on household expenditures and the demographic
characteristics of those households.  Survey data cannot be used to
make cost of living comparisons between areas.  Expenditures vary
among areas not only because of economic factors such as the prices
of goods and services and family income, but also because of
differences such as the age of the population, climate, consumer
tastes, family size, etc.  However, expenditure shares, or the
percentage of a consumer unit's budget spent on a particular
category, can be used to compare spending patterns across areas.  The
survey provides average expenditures for consumer units.  An
individual consumer unit may spend more or less than the average,
depending on its particular characteristics.

     Housing, the largest expenditure category for a household,
accounted for 32.3 percent of total expenditures in Minneapolis-St.
Paul, not too different from the 32.8-percent share spent nationally
and the lowest percentage among the Midwest areas under comparison.
The majority of housing costs in Minneapolis-St. Paul (60.6 percent)
went for shelter which includes mortgage interest, property taxes,
repairs, and rent, among other items; this was above the U.S. share
(58.8 percent).  Utilities, fuels, and public services accounted for
15.9 percent of total housing expenditures; nationally, it made up
20.6 percent.  The rate of home ownership in Minneapolis-St. Paul, at
71 percent, was above the national average of 67 percent.  Of the
four metropolitan areas in the Midwest, only residents of Milwaukee
(61 percent) were less likely to be homeowners than their national
counterparts.

Table A.  Percent distribution of housing expenditures for the
U.S. and selected areas, 2002-2003
----------------------------------------------------------------
                         |United | Mpls- |       |       | Mil-
           Item          |States |St.Paul|Chicago|Detroit|waukee
----------------------------------------------------------------
Total housing            | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 
 Shelter                 |  58.8 |  60.6 |  60.3 |  61.1 |  61.2
 Utilities, fuels & serv.|  20.6 |  15.9 |  18.7 |  20.2 |  17.8
 Household operations    |   5.3 |   4.9 |   5.1 |   5.1 |   4.3
 Housekeeping supplies   |   4.0 |   4.2 |   3.7 |   3.7 |   4.2
 Household furnishings   |  11.3 |  14.  |  12.2 |  10.0 |  12.5
----------------------------------------------------------------

     At 17.2 percent of the total budget, transportation was the
second largest expenditure category in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area;
this was below the national average of 19.1 percent.  Shares in
Milwaukee (16.6 percent) and Chicago (16.9 percent) were also under
the nationwide average, but exceeded the national norm in Detroit
(20.5 percent).  Of the $9,280 annual expenditure on transportation
in Minneapolis-St. Paul, 92.8 percent was spent buying and
maintaining private vehicles.  (See table 2 for detailed expenditure
levels.)  The average number of vehicles per household in Minneapolis-
St. Paul was 2.6.  This was considerably more than the national
average of 2.0 vehicles and highest among the four Midwest cities.
The remaining 7.2 percent of a Minneapolis-St. Paul household's
transportation budget was spent on public transit which includes
taxis, buses, trains, and planes.

     Minneapolis-St. Paul consumer units spent 11.5 percent of their
budget on food, below the nationwide average of 13.1 percent.  At
12.8 percent, households in both Milwaukee and Chicago had food
expenditure shares closer to the national average, as did those in
Detroit at 12.5 percent.  Of the $6,235 annual food expenditure,
households in the Twin Cities spent 55.2 percent on food prepared at
home, joining the other three areas with shares lower than the 58.1-
percent national average.  The remainder of a Minneapolis-St. Paul
household's food budget, 44.8 percent, was spent on food prepared
away from home (such as restaurant meals, carry-outs, board at
school, and catered affairs); this was above the U.S. average of 41.9
percent.

     Payments for personal insurance and pensions accounted for 12.9
percent of the typical Minneapolis-St. Paul household's budget, the
highest share among the selected Midwest areas and above the national
average of 9.8 percent.  Expenditure shares for personal insurance
and pensions matched the U.S. average in Detroit and Milwaukee and
trailed in Chicago (8.7 percent).

     Spending on apparel and related services accounted for 3.8
percent of total expenditures in Minneapolis-St. Paul; the national
average was 4.2 percent.  Of the four selected Midwest areas, only
Detroit's share exceeded 5 percent.
 
     Out-of-pocket health care expenses, which include health
insurance premiums, medical services, drugs (prescription and
nonprescription), and medical supplies, accounted for 4.8 percent of
a Minneapolis-St. Paul's household budget.  Households in Chicago
(5.2 percent) and Detroit (4.5 percent) joined those in the Twin
Cities with shares less than the 5.9-percent nationwide average.
Milwaukee households matched the national percentage.

     Minneapolis-St. Paul area households spent 6.6 percent of their
budget on entertainment, above the 5.1-percent share allocated
nationally and the highest among the four areas under comparison.

     Cash contributions accounted for 3.6 percent of a consumer
unit's spending in Minneapolis-St. Paul.  Shares for households in
Milwaukee (3.3 percent) and Chicago (3.0 percent) were closer to the
3.2-percent U.S. average; in Detroit, the percentage of the budget
allocated for cash contributions trailed that for the nation at 2.6
percent

                                # # #


Additional Data Available

     Data tables are available for the four Census regions and for
the national average.  These tables may be obtained from the
Bureau's automated Fax-on-Demand service.  See below.  Additional
tables are offered under the heading "Tables Created by BLS" on the
BLS Internet site www.bls.gov/cex.

                             Technical Note

    The current Consumer Expenditure Survey (CE) program began in
1980.  Its principal objective is to collect information on the
buying habits of American consumers.  The consumer expenditure data
are used in a wide variety of research by government, business,
labor, and academic analysts.  The data are also required for
periodic revision of the Consumer Price Index (CPI).

    The survey consists of two components, a diary or recordkeeping
survey, and an interview survey.  The Diary Survey, completed by
participating consumer units for two consecutive 1-week periods,
collects data on frequently purchased smaller items.  The Interview
Survey, in which the expenditures of consumer units are obtained in
five interviews conducted every 3 months, collects data for larger-
cost items and expenditures that occur on a regular basis.  The U.S.
Census Bureau collects the survey data.

    Each component of the survey queries an independent sample of
consumer units which is representative of the U.S. population.  Over
the year, about 7,500 consumer units are sampled for the Diary
Survey.  The Interview sample is conducted on a rotating panel basis,
with about 7,500 consumer units participating each quarter.  The data
are collected on an ongoing basis in 105 areas of the country.

    The integrated data from the BLS Diary and Interview Surveys
provide a complete accounting of consumer expenditures and income,
which neither survey component alone is designed to do.  Due to
changes in the survey sample frame, metropolitan area data in this
release are not directly comparable to those prior to 1996.

    The expenditure data in this release should be interpreted with
care.  The expenditures are averages for consumer units with the
specified characteristics, regardless of whether or not a specific
unit incurred an expense for that specific item during the recording
period.  The average expenditure may be considerably lower than the
expenditure by those consumer units that purchased the item.  This
study is not intended as a comparative cost of living survey as
neither the quantity nor the quality of goods and services has been
held constant among areas.  Differences may result from variations in
consumer unit preferences or characteristics such as consumer unit
size, age, income levels, etc.  Users should keep in mind that prices
for many goods and services have risen since the survey was
conducted.

    In addition, sample surveys are subject to two types of errors.
Sampling errors occur because the data are collected from a
representative sample rather than the entire population.  Nonsampling
errors result from the inability or unwillingness or respondents to
provide correct information, differences in interviewer ability,
mistakes in recording or coding, or other processing errors.  The
year-to-year changes are volatile and should be interpreted
carefully.  The survey sample for the nation is much larger than for
individual metropolitan areas, meaning the resulting national
estimates are more reliable than those for the metropolitan areas.

    Some expenditure components are subject to large fluctuations from
one year to the next because these components include expensive items
that relatively few consumers purchase each year.  Thus, shifts from
year to year in the number of consumers making such purchases can
have a large effect on average expenditures.  Examples of these types
of expenses are purchases of new cars and trucks in the
transportation component, and spending on boats and recreational
vehicles in the entertainment component.

    The Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) and Consolidated
Metropolitan Statistical Areas (CMSAs) covered by the Consumer
Expenditure Survey represent areas designated by the U.S. Office of
Management and Budget and are based on definitions in effect as of
December 1992.  The general concept of an MSA is one of a large
population nucleus, together with adjacent communities which have a
high degree of economic and social integration with that nucleus.
The following metropolitan areas are discussed in this release:

    Chicago-Gary-Kenosha, Illinois-Indiana-Wisconsin CMSA which is
comprised of Cook, DeKalb, DuPage, Grundy, Kane, Kankakee, Kendall,
Lake, McHenry and Will Counties, Illinois; Lake and Porter Counties,
Indiana; and Kenosha County, Wisconsin;

    Cleveland-Akron, Ohio CMSA which is comprised of Ashtabula,
Cuyahoga, Geauga, Lake, Lorain, Medina, Portage, and Summit Counties;

    Detroit-Ann Arbor-Flint, Michigan CMSA which is comprised of
Genesee, Lapeer, Lenawee, Livingston, Macomb, Monroe, Oakland, St.
Clair, Washtenaw, and Wayne Counties; and

    Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota-Wisconsin CMSA which is comprised
of Anoka, Carver, Chisago, Dakota, Hennepin, Isanti, Ramsey, Scott,
Sherburne, Washington, and Wright Counties, Minnesota; and Pierce and
St. Croix Counties, Wisconsin.

    The Consumer Expenditure Survey also provides data for the four
regions of the country as defined by the U.S. Bureau of the Census -
Northeast, South, Midwest, and West.  Data for metropolitan areas
presented in tables 1 and 2 of this release are part of the Midwest
region which includes the states of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas,
Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South
Dakota, and Wisconsin.

                             Definitions

    Consumer unit - members of a household related by blood, marriage,
adoption, or other legal arrangement; a single person living alone or
sharing a household with others but who is financially independent;
or two or more persons living together who share responsibility for
at least 2 out of 3 major types of expenses - food, housing, and
other expenses.  The terms household and consumer unit are used
interchangeably for convenience.

    Complete income reporter - in general, a consumer unit that
provides values for at least one of the major sources of its income
such as wages and salaries, self-employment income, or Social
Security income.  Even complete income reporters may not have
provided a full accounting of all income from all sources.

    Expenditures - consists of the transaction costs, including excise
and sales taxes, of goods and services acquired during the interview
or recordkeeping period.  Expenditure estimates include expenditures
for gifts, but exclude purchases or portions of purchases directly
assignable to business purposes.  Also excluded are periodic credit
or installment payments on goods or services already acquired.  The
full cost of each purchase is recorded even though full payment may
not have been made at the date of purchase.

    Income before taxes - the total money earnings and selected money
receipts during the 12 months prior to the interview date.


Table 1.  Consumer unit characteristics and percent distribution
of expenditures, U.S. and selected metropolitan areas, Consumer
Expenditure Survey, 2002-2003
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
                              | United | Mpls. |       |       | Mil-
          Item                | States |St.Paul|Chicago|Detroit|waukee
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Consumer unit characteristics:
 Income before taxes 1/        $50,302  $69,758 $64,670 $57,541 $48,531
 Age of reference person          48.2     47.4    47.7    48.8    49.9

Average number in consumer unit:
 Persons                           2.5      2.4     2.8     2.6     2.5
 Children under 18                  .6       .6      .8      .7      .7
 Persons 65 and over                .3       .2      .2      .3      .3
 Earners                           1.3      1.4     1.5     1.3     1.3
 Vehicles                          2.0      2.6     1.7     2.0     2.0

Percent homeowner                   67       71      69      74      61


Average annual expenditures    $40,748  $54,088 $47,016 $44,039 $40,890
 Total (percent):                100.0    100.0   100.0   100.0   100.0

Food                              13.1     11.5    12.8    12.5    12.8

Alcoholic beverages                 .9      1.2     1.0     1.0     1.3

Housing                           32.8     32.3    36.3    32.8    35.1

Apparel & services                 4.2      3.8     4.3     5.6     4.6

Transportation                    19.1     17.2    16.9    20.5    16.6

Health Care                        5.9      4.8     5.2     4.5     5.9

Entertainment                      5.1      6.6     4.9     4.4     5.2

Personal care products & serv.     1.3      1.2     1.3     1.4     1.3

Reading                             .3       .4      .3      .3      .4

Education                          1.9      1.9     2.6     1.7     1.6

Tobacco products & smoking
 supplies                           .7       .6      .6      .9      .9

Miscellaneous                      1.7      2.1     2.0     1.8     1.3

Cash contributions                 3.2      3.6     3.0     2.6     3.3

Personal insurance & pensions      9.8     12.9     8.7     9.8     9.8
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
1/ Components of income and taxes are derived from "complete income
reporters" only; see definitions.


Table 2.  Average annual expenditures, U.S. and selected metropolitan
areas, Consumer Expenditure Survey, 2002-2003
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
                              | United | Mpls. |       |       | Mil-
          Item                | States |St.Paul|Chicago|Detroit|waukee
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Average annual expenditures:   $40,748  $54,088 $47,016 $44,039 $40,890

Food                             5,357    6,235   6,001   5,511   5,234
Food at home                     3,114    3,444   3,418   3,073   2,882
Food away from home              2,243    2,791   2,583   2,439   2,352

Alcoholic beverages                384      634     486     430     536

Housing                         13,359   17,451  17,059  14,429  14,364
 Shelter                         7,859   10,575  10,290   8,814   8,786
 Utilities, fuels & public serv. 2,749    2,766   3,190   2,911   2,558
 Household operations              706      849     876     732     622
 Housekeeping supplies             537      730     624     530     601
 Household furnishings & equip.  1,508    2,531   2,080   1,442   1,796

Apparel & services               1,694    2,056   2,017   2,473   1,880

Transportation                   7,770    9,280   7,961   9,024   6,797
 Vehicle purchases (net outlay)  3,699    4,209   3,570   3,955   3,002
 Gasoline & motor oil            1,285    1,400   1,325   1,354   1,284
 Other vehicle expenses          2,400    3,007   2,410   3,229   2,142
 Public transportation             387      664     657     486     368

Health care                      2,384    2,576   2,462   1,999   2,429

Entertainment                    2,069    3,596   2,326   1,950   2,114

Personal care products & serv.     526      650     588     630     521

Reading                            133      202     138     145     147

Education                          768    1,044   1,224     767     634

Tobacco products & smoking
 supplies                          305      309     300     383     368

Miscellaneous                      698    1,126     945     805     537

Cash contributions               1,324    1,937   1,431   1,158   1,342

Personal insurance & pensions    3,978    6,993   4,077   4,335   3,988
 Life & other personal ins.        402      641     324     304     414
 Pensions & Social Security      3,576    6,352   3,754   4,031   3,575
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