Welcome to City-Data.com Forum!
U.S. CitiesCity-Data Forum Index
Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Arizona > Phoenix area
 [Register]
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
View detailed profile (Advanced) or search
site with Google Custom Search

Search Forums  (Advanced)
Reply Start New Thread
 
Old 09-19-2014, 12:48 AM
 
2,802 posts, read 3,149,974 times
Reputation: 2701

Advertisements

Recently we looked at how people vote for leadership like that of Russel Pearce (Who in their right mind voted for Russell Pearce?). Now let's discuss why we have the third highest poverty of all US metro areas and there are more dismal results:

"The median income in the Phoenix metro area for 2013 was just over $51,800. That is down from $53,473 in 2010, according to Census data." [Nationwide I see an increase 49,276 to 51,017 2010 - 2012, not finding 2013 numbers]

"Phoenix median incomes are roughly on par with those in Detroit..."

"The Valley’s poverty levels also have worsened since 2010 when 16.3 percent of residents were below the federal poverty line. [Now 17%]"

"Only Miami and Riverside, California, had worse overall poverty rates than Phoenix among the largest U.S. metropolitan areas."

Looks like Phoenix is falling way behind the curve. Nationwide the median income is going up somewhat. It could sure go up more if you ask me, particularly when you see how much income is going up nationwide for the 1%. However, falling median income in Phoenix is even worse and not helping our already high poverty situation. What can we do about this and what kind of leadership would we need to get us out of this situation?



Income down, poverty up in post-recession Phoenix - Phoenix Business Journal

https://www.census.gov/hhes/www/inco...a/statemedian/
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message

 
Old 09-19-2014, 02:13 AM
 
Location: In the hot spot!
3,939 posts, read 6,681,103 times
Reputation: 4091
Good question. I will need to mull this over. There are some recent economic "red flags" that give me some concerns like not getting the Tesla factory and losing the U.S. Airways headquarters. I know our tech industry is growing, but it is small compared to cities like Austin and San Jose. Not sure how to explain the decrease in the median income. I look forward to reading the responses to this thread.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 09-19-2014, 07:46 AM
 
9,676 posts, read 11,041,010 times
Reputation: 8391
Quote:
Originally Posted by Potential_Landlord View Post
"
.....However, falling median income in Phoenix is even worse and not helping our already high poverty situation. What can we do about this and what kind of leadership would we need to get us out of this situation?
Maybe the folks who are in poverty didn't take advantage of the incredible opportunities that were given to them. People need to work their butts off and learn all they can. That would be a good start. Gone are the days of personal responsibility. Lately, it's someone else's fault for their wasted opportunities. I realize this is oversimplifying the problem. But most of the solutions can be found from within.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 09-19-2014, 09:12 AM
 
Location: Sonoran Desert
38,971 posts, read 50,909,546 times
Reputation: 28148
Two reasons: the large number of illegal immigrants and the miserable recovery in construction. The F500s may get the glory, but it is small business that employs most Americans and drives our economy. Without construction, both the builders and the huge ancillary activities around construction have come to a near standstill. We need growth to drive that. The growth in the early 2000s created job growth that led the nation back then. While I think that our bad image has hurt growth, I also believe that it is stagnant wages and the growing wage gap across the country that is more to blame. Unless and until that is reversed, people simply are not going to have the finances and the confidence in finding work to move to AZ.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 09-19-2014, 09:45 AM
 
Location: Phoenix metro
20,004 posts, read 77,138,155 times
Reputation: 10370
I agree with Ponderosa. The construction industry was hit enormously hard here, as PHX and Vegas were the epicenter of the crash it seemed. I wish PHX wouldnt have to bank so hard on construction as a driving force in the economy, but thats the way it is.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 09-19-2014, 09:54 AM
 
Location: In the hot spot!
3,939 posts, read 6,681,103 times
Reputation: 4091
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ponderosa View Post
Two reasons: the large number of illegal immigrants and the miserable recovery in construction. The F500s may get the glory, but it is small business that employs most Americans and drives our economy. Without construction, both the builders and the huge ancillary activities around construction have come to a near standstill. We need growth to drive that. The growth in the early 2000s created job growth that led the nation back then. While I think that our bad image has hurt growth, I also believe that it is stagnant wages and the growing wage gap across the country that is more to blame. Unless and until that is reversed, people simply are not going to have the finances and the confidence in finding work to move to AZ.



Very good points, but I think the stagnant wages, coupled with our image issue, may contribute to the situation more than we'd like to admit. New relocatees often remark on how low the pay scale is in the country's sixth largest city. As for the undocumented people who come across the border, I have met and seen that many are hardworking people who just want a better life. Sure there are a few bad eggs, but that is not the majority. I see them working jobs most Americans shun. I also believe AZ needs to keep working to broaden its economic base and not rely on one sector (housing) to fuel growth because we've seen how that that can end up.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 09-19-2014, 10:04 AM
 
9,189 posts, read 16,547,789 times
Reputation: 11290
It's a chicken and egg situation. Young, educated, progressive people don't want to move here because the job pool is weak. Companies don't want to move here because there's a lack of a young, educated talent-pool, among other reasons. We need to do a much better job attracting companies to our state and job #1 is to shed our current image. Once we're taken seriously, and we most certainly are not right now, we'll have a shot at attracting businesses and improving our economy.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 09-19-2014, 11:03 AM
 
Location: Avondale and Tempe, Arizona
2,852 posts, read 4,479,218 times
Reputation: 2561
I think a large share of the population here is moderately progressive based on the people I run across.

The problem is many of the neanderthals in the state government, they are anything but progressive with the way they slashed funding for education, CPS, AHCCCS, and other programs.

The anti-union mentality doesn't help matters regarding why wages are on the low side.

Until we start electing leaders who are more politically moderate I don't expect things to improve very much in our national rankings.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 09-19-2014, 02:58 PM
 
Location: La Jolla, CA
7,284 posts, read 16,602,377 times
Reputation: 11675
Too reliant on construction
Poor education system
Weak job market
Immigrationally challenged population
Fell harder than most other places

... to name a few.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 09-19-2014, 03:13 PM
 
2,769 posts, read 5,685,963 times
Reputation: 5079
Quote:
Originally Posted by Potential_Landlord View Post
What can we do about this and what kind of leadership would we need to get us out of this situation?
You could start a business and pay people $55k.

As for leaders, maybe Martians. You sure as hell aren't going to get any leadership from pols or their puppet masters.

One thing to keep in mind, this is the desert, people move here because it's cheap and sunny. The low COL attracts people from all walks but not necessarily the types that can or will build businesses from the ground up.

My biggest fear is that efforts to "improve" life here (especially if conceived by a politician) will only result in huge public debt/private profit schemes.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.

Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.


Reply
Please update this thread with any new information or opinions. This open thread is still read by thousands of people, so we encourage all additional points of view.

Quick Reply
Message:


Settings
X
Data:
Loading data...
Based on 2000-2020 data
Loading data...

123
Hide US histogram

Over $104,000 in prizes was already given out to active posters on our forum and additional giveaways are planned!

Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Arizona > Phoenix area
Similar Threads

All times are GMT -6.

© 2005-2024, Advameg, Inc. · Please obey Forum Rules · Terms of Use and Privacy Policy · Bug Bounty

City-Data.com - Contact Us - Archive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 - Top