Homelessness, Rural

Defining “Rural”

One challenge in studying homelessness in rural areas is that there is no single definition of “rural” for statistical and other purposes. Rural communities are generally thought to be places with small, low-density populations, often remote from larger cities and towns. In reality, these geographic characteristics exist on a continuum and there is no obvious dividing line between “urban” and “rural.” Two of the most common definitions are based on standards developed by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and the Bureau of the Census. Both define rural areas as those that fall outside certain areas: “metropolitan statistical areas” (or MSAs) in the OMB standard, or “urbanized areas and urban clusters” in the Census definition. MSAs are composed of one or more counties, and are defined based on population size and density, and the extent to which fringe counties are economically tied to core metropolitan counties. Because county-level data are quite plentiful, MSAs are often used as a basis for comparing urban and rural America statistically. On the other hand, the Census defines “urbanized areas and urban clusters” by settlement size and density, ignoring county boundaries. The Census approach offers a somewhat purer measure of “rural” but is more difficult to use (Hewitt 1989). Data from the 2000 census show that 21 percent of the nation's population (or 59.1 million people) live in rural areas according to the Census definition, while a slightly lower share, 17.4 percent (or 49.2 million people), live in non-metropolitan areas as defined by OMB (U.S. Department of Agriculture 2003). But the two groups are not identical: About half (50.8 percent) of all Census-defined rural residents actually live in counties classified as falling within an MSA. Moreover, among residents of counties not included in MSAs, 41.1 percent live in urban areas.

Why Place Matters

Whatever standard one uses to distinguish rural from urban areas, it is clear that the differences between them extend far beyond size, density, and distance. Living in a rural community has important economic, social, and cultural implications, and these in turn affect how people experience poverty and homelessness, and also how communities can best address these problems.

Housing costs are often lower in rural areas, but so too are incomes, with the result that rent burdens in rural communities are often as high or higher than those in urban places. Furthermore, opportunities for raising one's income are much more limited in rural areas. Lower levels of education, less competition for workers, and fewer high-skilled jobs in the occupational [Page 251]mix result in lower wages and higher levels of unemployment, underemployment, and seasonal employment in rural communities. In addition, low population density discourages the development of workplace supports and infrastructure such as education and training, child care, and public transportation.

...