The 2025 Kinder Houston Area Survey, the largest edition in its history, revisits neighboring Fort Bend and Montgomery counties for the first time since 2018. And despite the survey’s expanded reach and the divisiveness of the current political landscape, researchers found several areas with profound agreement among residents.
Over the last several years, we have come to understand that Houston is no longer as affordable as it once was. At the same time, relatively little has been learned about the quality of the places and spaces people call “home.” That’s why the Kinder Institute’s Housing Quality Registry is so urgently needed.
Thirty-four percent of Harris County residents are financially secure, meaning they could go without a paycheck for three months or longer using just their savings, according to new Kinder Institute research.
An increasing number of Harris County residents are unable to readily come up with $400 to cover an unexpected expense — such as replacing tires worn out from crumbling roads, replacing a refrigerator full of food after the electricity is knocked out for a couple of days, or having a kid get sick or injured and needing to make a visit to an urgent care facility.
Buying a home continues to be a good investment: It has a better rate of return than most other investments, and unlike stocks, a home provides shelter, a fundamental human need. Unfortunately, it is an investment that far exceeds the grasp of many Houston-area residents.
Over the course of about four weeks early in 2024, residents across Harris County were asked their opinions on a variety of topics as part of the Kinder Houston Area Survey. That includes a question that has been asked every year since the survey’s founding in 1982: “What would you say is the biggest problem facing people in the Houston area today?”
Houston-area nonprofit organizations need help in collecting and using data, according to the results of a 2022 survey of more than 100 groups. Many nonprofits collect substantial amounts of data, and were seeking guidance on how to use that information to better understand their programs, services and clients.
In the labor force and in postsecondary education, women lag behind their male counterparts when it comes to careers and interest in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).
With John Whitmire taking the helm of the city of Houston, residents made it clear their top priorities for the new mayor are reducing crime, improving infrastructure and alleviating the high cost of housing. For his part, Whitmire addressed most of these issues during his campaign, setting lofty goals for his administration — but now it’s up to him and a new City Council to begin delivering.
A new comprehensive federal report documenting the effects of climate change across the country includes Kinder Institute research to bring attention to Harris County’s vulnerabilities.
A Texas gun control case is now in the hands of the U.S. Supreme Court, which could either clear the way for more regulations or close the door to further restrictions on Second Amendment rights. The decision could take months, but no matter the outcome, our surveys show that most Houstonians would embrace a wide range of policies aimed at bolstering responsible gun ownership and public safety.
This year’s State of Housing in Harris County and Houston focuses on renters and renting. A majority of Houston households rent, as does a soon-to-be majority of the county’s households. This means renting and rental policy play an increasingly important role in determining the region’s quality of life.
As economic aftershocks from the COVID-19 pandemic linger, Houstonians have a dimmer view of their prospects, according to the 42nd annual Kinder Houston Area Survey. With inflation and housing costs reaching record highs—and a potential recession on the horizon—optimism among survey respondents was at one of its lowest levels in nearly three decades. More than ever before, Houston residents are also in alignment that more must be done to close income gaps.
The 2022 State of Housing in Harris County and Houston analyzed foreclosures countywide from 2005 to 2020. But what happens to a neighborhood after a foreclosure crisis?
The past two years have been a heady time for real estate, and as we emerge from the pandemic’s fog of uncertainty, the 2022 State of Housing report details an increasingly stressed situation in Harris County and Houston. Median prices now exceed $300,000 and are approaching $350,000, slipping out of reach for residents earning the median household income. Meanwhile, much of the already limited affordable rental housing stock is becoming increasingly vulnerable.
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