A Changing Connecticut Has Become Older, Slightly More Diverse

Newly released data has revealed numerous changes in Connecticut’s population characteristics between the five years through 2014 and the five years through 2019, resulting in a state with slightly fewer residents, a higher median age, increased median household income, wide variations in diversity among communities in a slightly more diverse state, relatively consistent median home values but higher average rents, and an increase in residents enrolled in a health insurance plan.

The data is gathered as part of the American Community Survey (ACS), administered by the United States Census Bureau on an ongoing basis, from January through December every year. The 2019 ACS 5-Year survey data, including 2015-2019 and released today, has been analyzed by the Connecticut Data Collaborative (CTData) and included in an interactive platform that provides the public with an opportunity to explore some of the key datasets that are collected as part of the survey. It is the third consecutive year that the interactive platform has been updated and made available on the CTData website.

The Connecticut Data Collaborative (CTData) is a statewide public-private partnership that focuses on ensuring that public data is open and accessible.

Connecticut’s estimated population was 3.57 million, a decrease of 0.5% from 3.59 million in 2014. Any changes that may have occurred in 2020, including any impact of the coronavirus on population moves, were not included in the 5-year period covered by the newly released ACS data.

The ten largest municipalities in Connecticut did not change between 2014 and 2019, led by Bridgeport, New Haven, Stamford, Hartford and Waterbury. Communities with the largest population increases were Chaplin (+10%), Norfolk (+10%) and Lyme (+6%); towns with the largest population decreases were Cornwall (-14%), Franklin (-11%) and Hartland (-10%).

Aging Communities

A total of 128 of Connecticut’s 169 municipalities experienced an increase in median age. The median age of residents in Connecticut is 41.0, up slightly from 40.3 in 2014. There were 37 towns that experienced a decrease in median age, and 4 towns saw no change. Mansfield, host to the University of Connecticut’s main campus, had a median age of 21; Essex, with a large retiree population, had a median age of 55.

Divergent Diversity

One-third of residents in Connecticut are persons of color (including white residents who are multi-racial), according to the ACS data, an increase of 3% from 2014. Hartford remains the municipality with the highest percentage of persons of color (85%), followed by Bridgeport (80%) and New Haven (71%). Additionally, a large percentage of Hartford, Bridgeport, and New Haven residents speak a language other than English at home (43%, 49%, and 36%, respectively). By contrast, only 2% of residents in Woodstock and 3% of residents in Killingworth are persons of color (down from 6% and 8% in 2014, respectively) and very few residents in these towns speak a language other than English at home.

“The ACS data provides quantifiable insight into an evolving state population,” said Michelle Riordan-Nold, Executive Director at Connecticut Data Collaborative. “The data will prove valuable to policy makers at the state and municipal level, helping them to make informed decisions by providing up-to-date information on income, housing, education, and more. The data also provides insights for regional agencies, businesses, education and nonprofit organizations seeking to better understand Connecticut’s population. This data gives us a good look at Connecticut before the impact of pandemic, so we can better understand where we were, and ultimately where we may be headed.”

Increasing Rent, Stable Home Values

A typical Connecticut renter was paying $1,180 monthly for rent in 2019, compared to $1,069 in 2014 - a 12% increase. Changes in rent varied vastly from town to town - Bethlehem and Wolcott saw an increase in rent of over 50%, while Franklin saw a 58% decrease.

Across Connecticut, there has always been a drastic disparity in home values and 2019 is no different. Home values in Darien, New Canaan, Greenwich, and Westport were over $1,000,000, while home values in communities such as New Britain and Windham were well under $200,000. On average, home values stayed relatively consistent from 2014 to 2019, with a median home value of $275,400, compared to $274,500 in 2014. Some of the largest increases were in Lyme (+21%), Canaan (+17%), and Sprague (+13%); the steepest drops were seen in Sharon (-20%), Washington (-16%), and Griswold (-15%).

More Residents Have Health Insurance

There were more Connecticut residents enrolled in a health insurance plan in nearly every town and city in the state. Overall, the percentage of those who did not have health insurance decreased from 9% to 5% statewide, with the percentage of uninsured residents decreasing in 151 municipalities, remaining the same in two towns, and slightly increasing in just 13 towns. Westbrook, Willington, and Canterbury reduced the number of uninsured residents considerably, from over 10% uninsured in 2014 to between 1-3% in 2019.

Median Income Climbs Amid Continuing Disparities, Educational Attainment Mirrors Income

The ACS data also revealed that the median household income in Connecticut increased by 12%, from $69,899 in 2014 to $78,444 in 2019. Of Connecticut’s 169 towns, 151 experienced an increase in median income and 18 experienced a decrease. Connecticut’s extremes continued: median household income exceeded $200,000 in Darien, Weston, and Westport, while median income was under $45,000 in Hartford, New Haven and Waterbury.

Among residents who are 25 and older, 91% have obtained at least a high school degree (or equivalent), compared to 90% in 2014, and 39% have obtained at least a Bachelor’s degree, compared to 37% in 2014. Trends in educational attainment are consistent with income levels - 83% of residents in Darien, 80% in New Canaan, and 78% in Weston have obtained at least a Bachelor’s degree, whereas only 16% in Waterbury and 17% in Hartford have done so.

CTData, as an advocate for accessible data, runs the CTData Academy, so individuals, businesses and organizations can become more informed data users and critical data consumers. The Data Academy accomplishes this through informational sessions and workshops throughout the year to help participants become more comfortable with using and disseminating data. CT Data also provides customized data training, hosts easy-to-use, downloadable data, creates customized data visualizations and interactive data tools, and provides data consulting services. More than 200 data sets are now accessible to the public on the CTData website. CTData was recognized in 2020 by the Connecticut Entrepreneur Awards in the Education category. More information is available at www.ctdata.org.