(The Center Square) – Adjusted for inflation, average household income in the North Carolina was up 7.7% from 2020 to 2024 compared to the previous five years, says analysis by the North Carolina Office of State Budget and Management.
Forty of the state’s 100 counties had income gains, 58 stayed the same, and drops were recorded in just two. Much of the state came through the COVID-19 era faring better economically, in part because of government policies and cash infusions, the analysis of newly released U.S. Census shows.
Wake County had the highest average household income at $105,788 and Tyrell County the lowest at $41,685.
The percentage of people with health insurance increased and the percentage living in households below the federal poverty level declined.
The economic gains are “intertwined” with the state and federal policies enacted during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to report, which was authored by John Quinterno. He’s the census liaison and state data center coordinator.
“During the height of the COVID pandemic, the U.S. Congress boosted the money income (which is what the Census Bureau tracks) of many households through such policies as enhanced unemployment insurance payments and three rounds of direct economic impact payments,” Quintero wrote.
Congress also expanded child tax credits, raised subsidies for insurance under the Affordable Care Act and paused student loan payments.
COVID-19 is widely accepted as beginning nationwide on Thursday, March 12, 2020, with shutdowns rippling across the country. Former Gov. Roy Cooper ended the emergency declaration on Aug. 15, 2022.
“And when the economy reopened, many working people saw meaningful wage gains as employers competed in a tight labor market,” the report states. “The combination of generous policy choices and tight labor markets left many households better off materially.”
But it remains to be seen what the postpandemic economy will be, he wrote.
“Today, most pandemic-related programs have ended, and the labor market is weakening,” Quinterno wrote. “Add the effects of inflation and higher out-of-pocket costs for health care, housing, and child care, and many households report seeing themselves as being worse off. The end of those COVID era programs could explain some of the current economic conditions.“
It will take a while for the new reality to show up in the census numbers.
“In coming years, it may turn out that the improvements in incomes, poverty, and health insurance coverage experienced across much of the state from 2015-19 to 2020-24 were tied to an extraordinary set of conditions,” Quintero wrote. “Greater insight into whether these trends are sustainable will come this fall when the Census Bureau reports 2025 housing and income data for the state and its most populous counties.”
Even with the improvements from 2020 to 2024, North Carolina “still had a higher poverty rate than 34 other states,” according to the report. Also, the state’s rate of citizens without health insurance was higher than in 39 other states, the report said.
