W.Va. Ranks Last On National List, Again

The Herald-Dispatch, May 31, 2005

Looking at lists is bad for people who care about West Virginia.

The Census Bureau came out last week with its 2003 data on median home values. Based on that information, West Virginia has the lowest median value of owner-occupied homes in the United States, at $78,201. That means half the homes in West Virginia are valued at more than $78,201, and half are valued lower.

The next lowest was North Dakota, at $78,577. The highest was California, at $316,597.

Surprisingly, West Virginia was not at the bottom in the Census Bureau’s estimate of the number of homes valued at $1 million or more. The agency found no homes in North Dakota worth $1 million. West Virginia ranked 48th among the 50 states and the District of Columbia in percentage of million-dollar homes, with one-tenth of 1 percent. Arkansas and Iowa also ranked lower, along with North Dakota.

These numbers shouldn’t be that surprising. The state also ranks last in median household income and last in education level of its residents.