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Home > Community Development > Community Profiles > Scranton-Wilkes-Barre, PA Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) > Demographics and Economic Data

Community Profile: Scranton-Wilkes-Barre, PA Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA)

Demographics and Economic Data

Included in this section is a brief summary of demographic and economic data. Detailed data can be accessed through the following websites:

  • Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council External Link: The website includes a geocoding/mapping system that allows users to obtain census data based on specific street addresses and a census report system that provides census information by census tract within a county or MSA.
  • PolicyMap External Link: This geographic information system, which includes an interactive mapping tool developed by The Reinvestment Fund, allows users to create custom maps, tables, and charts for over 10,000 indicators and provides the ability to plot external data.
  • U.S. Census Bureau American FactFinder External Link: Official source for population, housing, economic, and geographic data collected by the U.S. Census Bureau.

Included below is a summary of the following data:

Note: The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) modified MSA boundaries effective January 1, 2004, at which time the boundary for the Scranton-Wilkes-Barre, PA MSA changed. The MSA was previously called the Scranton-Wilkes-Barre-Hazleton, PA, MSA and included Columbia County. With the boundary modifications, Columbia County became part of a micropolitan statistical area that also includes Montour County.

Unless otherwise noted, the data in this section, including data from the 2000 census, are based on the updated boundary for the Scranton-Wilkes-Barre, PA MSA effective January 1, 2004. The data include the following three counties: Lackawanna, Luzerne, and Wyoming.

Population1

The population of the Scranton-Wilkes-Barre, PA MSA fell from 575,264 in 1990 to 560,625 in 2000, representing a 2.5 percent decrease, while the state of Pennsylvania experienced a population increase of 3.4 percent. During this time, the city of Scranton had a more considerable population decrease of 6.6 percent.

Table 1 shows the racial composition of the state of Pennsylvania, Scranton-Wilkes-Barre, PA MSA, and the city of Scranton based on the 2000 census. In the Scranton-Wilkes-Barre, PA MSA nearly all of the population was white (96.7 percent), compared to 85.4 percent of the population for the state. Within the city of Scranton, 93.7 percent was white. The last line of the table represents the percentage of the total population who stated they were Hispanic or Latino in origin.

The racial composition of the Scranton-Wilkes-Barre, PA MSA is illustrated in Figure 1.

The racial composition of those who reported they were Hispanic or Latino in origin within the Scranton-Wilkes-Barre, PA MSA (1.2 percent of the total population for the MSA) is illustrated in Figure 2.

Income

The 1999 median household income for the Scranton-Wilkes-Barre, PA MSA was $34,147, and the median family income was $43,917.2 Statewide, the median household income was $40,106, and the median family income was $49,184. In the same year, the median household income for the city of Scranton was $28,805, and the median family income was $39,233.1

The term low- and moderate-income persons (LMI) is used for CRA and community development purposes and includes people and communities whose income is less than 80 percent of the area median income. People and communities whose income is less than 50 percent of the area median income are considered low income and those whose income exceeds 50 percent, but does not exceed 80 percent, are considered moderate income.

In 2000, there were 227,729 households within the Scranton-Wilkes-Barre, PA MSA. Of all the households in the census tracts, 24.3 percent were households with low incomes and 16.0 percent were households with moderate incomes. A household's income is not necessarily an indicator of the income of the census tract in which the household resides. As Table 2 indicates, 81.4 percent of all households with low incomes resided in middle- and upper-income census tracts, and 87.1 percent of all households with moderate incomes resided in middle- and upper-income census tracts.3

In 2008, there were 168 census tracts in the Scranton-Wilkes-Barre, PA MSA. Of the total, one was a low-income tract, and 21 were moderate-income tracts. In the city of Scranton, there were 27 census tracts. Of the total, one was a low-income tract, and six were moderate-income tracts.3

Poverty Level1

In 1999, the Scranton-Wilkes-Barre, PA MSA had 58,727 residents living below the poverty line, or 10.8 percent of the MSA population. Statewide, 11.0 percent of the population was living below the poverty line. In contrast, the city of Scranton had 15.0 percent of the total population (10,827 residents) living below the poverty line.

Information about how the U.S. Census Bureau measures poverty is available through its website. External Link

Housing Units1

In 2000, the Scranton-Wilkes-Barre, PA MSA had a total of 252,761 housing units, of which 90.1 percent were occupied, and 9.9 percent were vacant. Of the occupied housing units, 69.7 percent were occupied by the owner, and 30.3 percent were occupied by the renter.

The state of Pennsylvania had a total of 5,249,750 housing units, of which 91.0 percent were occupied, and 9.0 percent were vacant. The city of Scranton had a total of 35,336 housing units, of which 88.6 percent were occupied and 11.4 percent were vacant.

The reasons for vacancies are illustrated in Figure 3.

Housing Permits4

In January 2009, 10.7 housing permits for new, privately owned houses in the Scranton-Wilkes-Barre, PA MSA were issued. Of this group, all permits were for 1- to 4-unit homes. These numbers have been seasonally adjusted.

More current information regarding housing permits in the Scranton-Wilkes-Barre, PA MSA and other areas within the Third Federal Reserve District is available through a database on the Regional Employment, unemployment, and housing page of the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia's Research Department.

Local Industries4

The Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia's Research Department maintains a database of monthly employment data by industry for the Scranton-Wilkes-Barre, PA MSA. Excel spreadsheet Please note that all values for industry employment in this file are in thousands.

Unemployment Rate5

In 2008, the Scranton-Wilkes-Barre, PA MSA had an annual unemployment rate of 6.2 percent, compared with a rate of 5.4 percent for the state of Pennsylvania. The city of Scranton had an annual unemployment rate of 6.4 percent for the same year.

More recent unemployment data are available through the Bureau of Labor Statistics website. External Link

Education1

Overall, the Scranton-Wilkes-Barre, PA MSA population is not well educated: 17.5 percent of the population that is 25 years of age or older has a bachelor's degree or higher. The population of the city of Scranton is also not well educated, with only 15.6 percent of the population that is 25 years of age or older holding a bachelor's degree or higher. For the state of Pennsylvania, this figure is 22.4 percent. See Figure 4 for more details.

  • Last updated: Monday, August 18, 2009

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