News Release Information
Thursday, November 3, 2011
Contacts
Further information:
- (972) 850-4800
- BLSInfoDallas@bls.gov
- www.bls.gov/ro6
Consumer Expenditures for the Houston Area: 2009 – 2010
Consumer units 1 (households) in the Houston-Galveston-Brazoria metropolitan area spent an average of $56,764 per year in 2009-2010, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Stanley W. Suchman noted that this figure was nearly 17 percent above the $48,588 average annual expenditure level for a typical household in the United States. Although households in the Houston area spent more than the U.S. average, they tended to allocate their dollars similarly among the major categories, differing significantly in only one of the eight. (See chart 1.) Expenditures for food represented a significantly smaller share of the total budget in the Houston area, 11.6 percent, than the nationwide average of 12.9 percent.
Housing in the Houston metropolitan area averaged $19,323 annually and was the largest expenditure
category, accounting for 34.0 percent of the average Houston area household’s total budget. (See tables 1 and 2.) This share was not significantly different from the 34.4-percent national average. Overall, 10 of
the 18 published metropolitan areas had expenditure shares for housing measurably above the U.S.
average; only Detroit had a significantly lower than average share. (See chart 2.) Among the 18 areas,
housing shares ranged from 43.6 percent in Miami to 32.6 percent in Detroit. (See table 3.)
The majority of total housing expenditures in Houston went toward shelter, 56.4 percent, which includes
mortgage interest, property taxes, repairs, and rent, among other items; this was significantly below the
59.4-percent share allocated toward shelter nationwide. (See table A.) In contrast, expenses for utilities,
fuels, and public services accounted for 23.5 percent of the local housing budget, well above the national
average of 21.8 percent. The rate of homeownership in Houston, 68 percent, was above the U.S. average
of 66 percent.
Category | United States | Houston |
---|---|---|
Total Housing |
100.0 | 100.0 |
Shelter |
59.4 | 56.4 |
Utilities, fuels and public services |
21.8 | 23.5 |
Household operation |
6.0 | 7.7 |
Housekeeping supplies |
3.8 | 3.2 |
Household furnishings and equipment |
8.9 | 9.2 |
Note: Columns may not add to 100 due to rounding. |
At 16.6 percent of the total budget, transportation was the second-largest expenditure category in the
Houston area and was not significantly above the national average of 15.8 percent. Among the 18
metropolitan areas nationwide, only Detroit had a transportation share that was significantly above
average. (See chart 3.)
Among the remaining areas, six had significantly lower shares than the U.S.
average, the lowest being Baltimore at 12.4 percent, followed by San Francisco at 12.6 percent.
Of the $9,410 in annual expenditures for transportation in Houston, 94.4 percent was spent buying and
maintaining private vehicles compared to the national average of 93.7 percent. Despite the higher local
area transportation share, the average number of vehicles per household in Houston (2.0) was comparable
to the national average (1.9). The remaining 5.6 percent of the average Houston household’s
transportation budget was spent on public transit–which includes fares for taxis, buses, trains, and
planes; this was below the 6.3-percent average for the nation. (See table B.) Among the 18 areas, public
transportation budgets accounted for more than 10 percent of local transportation expenditures in 4
areas, led by New York (13.5 percent) and San Francisco (12.5 percent).
Category | United States | Houston |
---|---|---|
Total Transportation |
100.0 | 100.0 |
Vehicle purchases (net outlay) |
34.2 | 35.6 |
Gasoline and motor oil |
26.9 | 26.3 |
Other vehicle expenses |
32.6 | 32.5 |
Public transportation |
6.3 | 5.6 |
Note: Columns may not add to 100 due to rounding. |
The portion of the average Houston consumer unit’s budget spent on food, 11.6 percent, was
significantly below the U.S. average share of 12.9 percent. Houston was 1 of 7 metropolitan areas with
food expenditure shares significantly below the U.S. average; no area had food expenditure shares
significantly above the national average. The lowest food shares were in Seattle and Washington, D.C.,
both at 11.0 percent.
Households in Houston spent $3,527, or 53.4 percent, of their food dollars on food at home and the
remaining 46.6 percent on food away from home, such as restaurant meals, carry-out, board at school,
and catered affairs. In comparison, the typical U.S. household spent 59.0 percent of its food budget on
food at home and 41.0 percent on food away from home.
As noted, Houston is 1 of 18 metropolitan areas nationwide for which Consumer Expenditure Survey
(CE) data are available. We encourage users interested in learning more about the CE to contact the
Southwest Information Office at (972) 850-4800. Metropolitan area CE data and that for the four
geographic regions and the United States are available at www.bls.gov/cex/tables.htm.
Additional information
Data contained in this report are from the Consumer Expenditure Survey, which is conducted on an
ongoing basis by the U.S. Census Bureau for the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). The CE data were
averaged over a two-year period, 2009 and 2010 and are available for the nation, the 4 geographic
regions of the country, and 18 metropolitan areas. The metropolitan area discussed in this release is
Houston-Galveston-Brazoria, Texas, which is comprised of Austin, Brazoria, Chambers, Fort Bend,
Galveston, Harris, Liberty, Montgomery, San Jacinto, and Waller Counties.
The survey consists of two components, a diary or recordkeeping survey, and an interview survey. 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.
A consumer unit is defined as 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 or consumer unit are used
interchangeably for convenience.
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 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 demographic characteristics
such as consumer unit size, age, preferences, income levels, 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. Users should also keep in mind that prices for many goods and services have risen
since the survey was conducted.
The CE significance tests in this release compare expenditure shares for selected expenditure categories
in the United States to expenditure shares in selected metropolitan areas. (See table 3.) Expenditure
shares for housing and transportation that are above or below that for the nation after testing for
significance at the 95-percent confidence interval are also identified in chart 2 and chart 3 for the 18
metropolitan areas surveyed. Sample sizes for the metropolitan areas are much smaller than for the
nation, so the U.S. estimates and year-to-year changes are more reliable than those for the metropolitan
areas.
Footnote
1 See the Additional Information section for the definition of a consumer unit. The terms consumer unit and household are used interchangeably throughout the text for convenience.
Category | United States | Houston |
---|---|---|
Average annual expenditures |
$48,588 |
$56,764 |
Percent distribution: |
100.0 |
100.0 |
Food |
12.9 |
11.6* |
Alcoholic beverages |
.9 |
1.0 |
Housing |
34.4 |
34.0 |
Apparel and services |
3.5 |
3.7 |
Transportation |
15.8 |
16.6 |
Healthcare |
6.5 |
6.0 |
Entertainment |
5.3 |
5.0 |
Personal care products and services |
1.2 |
1.3 |
Reading |
.2 |
.2 |
Education |
2.2 |
2.1 |
Tobacco products and smoking supplies |
.8 |
.6* |
Miscellaneous |
1.7 |
2.2 |
Cash contributions |
3.5 |
3.9 |
Personal insurance and pensions |
11.2 |
11.8 |
*Statistically significant difference from the U.S. average at the 95-percent confidence level. |
Category | United States | Houston |
---|---|---|
Consumer unit characteristics: | ||
Income before taxes |
$62,669 | $70,713 |
Age of reference person |
49.4 | 47.0 |
Average number in consumer unit: | ||
Persons |
2.5 | 2.9 |
Children under 18 |
0.6 | 0.8 |
Persons 65 and over |
0.3 | 0.2 |
Earners |
1.3 | 1.6 |
Vehicles |
1.9 | 2.0 |
Percent homeowner |
66 | 68 |
Average annual expenditures: | ||
Average annual expenditures |
$48,588 | $56,764 |
Food |
6,250 | 6,610 |
Food at home |
3,689 | 3,527 |
Cereals and bakery products |
504 | 438 |
Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs |
813 | 817 |
Dairy products |
393 | 351 |
Fruits and vegetables |
668 | 638 |
Other food at home |
1,311 | 1,283 |
Food away from home |
2,562 | 3,083 |
Alcoholic beverages |
423 | 541 |
Housing |
16,726 | 19,323 |
Shelter |
9,943 | 10,903 |
Owned dwellings |
6,410 | 7,499 |
Rented dwellings |
2,880 | 2,793 |
Other lodging |
653 | 612 |
Utilities, fuels, and public services |
3,652 | 4,539 |
Household operations |
1,009 | 1,494 |
Housekeeping supplies |
635 | 618 |
Household furnishings and equipment |
1,486 | 1,770 |
Apparel and services |
1,712 | 2,095 |
Transportation |
7,668 | 9,410 |
Vehicle purchases (net outlay) |
2,623 | 3,351 |
Gasoline and motor oil |
2,059 | 2,471 |
Other vehicle expenses |
2,500 | 3,058 |
Public transportation |
486 | 531 |
Healthcare |
3,141 | 3,413 |
Entertainment |
2,599 | 2,833 |
Personal care products and services |
589 | 755 |
Reading |
105 | 129 |
Education |
1,071 | 1,176 |
Tobacco products and smoking supplies |
371 | 341 |
Miscellaneous |
833 | 1,268 |
Cash contributions |
1,678 | 2,193 |
Personal insurance and pensions |
5,422 | 6,677 |
Life and other personal insurance |
314 | 325 |
Pensions and Social Security |
5,108 | 6,352 |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics |
Area |       Housing       | Transportation |       Food       |
---|---|---|---|
United States |
34.4 |
15.8 |
12.9 |
Atlanta |
37.7* | 15.1 |
11.4* |
Baltimore |
39.1* | 12.4* | 11.7 |
Boston |
33.2 |
14.4 |
12.8 |
Chicago |
36.0* | 15.2 |
12.6 |
Cleveland |
33.0 |
15.6 |
12.4 |
Dallas |
34.3 |
15.1 |
12.6 |
Detroit |
32.6* | 18.7* | 12.0 |
Houston |
34.0 |
16.6 |
11.6* |
Los Angeles |
37.7* | 15.6 |
13.2 |
Miami |
43.6* | 15.5 |
12.7 |
Minneapolis |
33.6 |
13.7* | 12.7 |
New York |
39.4* | 13.5* | 12.6 |
Philadelphia |
37.8* | 13.4* | 11.9* |
Phoenix |
33.6 |
16.3 |
13.4 |
San Diego |
41.7* | 13.4* | 11.2* |
San Francisco |
39.0* | 12.6* | 11.8* |
Seattle |
33.1 |
15.4 |
11.0* |
Washington |
36.3* | 14.4 |
11.0* |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics |
![Chart3. Expenditure shares spent on transportation in 18 metropolitan statistical areas compared to the U.S. average, Consumer Expenditure Survey, 2009-2010](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/web/20121007232857im_/http://www.bls.gov/ro6/fax/cex_chart3.gif)
Last Modified Date: November 3, 2011