Latest news with #HouseholdPulseSurvey
Yahoo
20-03-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Analysis Shows Military Families Homeschool at Twice the Average Rate
An analysis by researchers at Johns Hopkins University has revealed that military families are much more likely to homeschool their children than civilians. It also suggested that the COVID-19 pandemic didn't exert as much of an influence on military families' choice to do so. The researchers identified military families as one of the special groups whose motivations to homeschool might help explain why households in the wider population do it. "We knew at least anecdotally that people said [military families] homeschooled at higher rates," said Angela Watson, assistant research professor at the Johns Hopkins School of Education. Read Next: Bill to Provide Full Retirement, Disability Pay to Combat-Injured Veterans Is Reintroduced by Lawmakers Data gathered as part of the Census Bureau's Household Pulse Survey, launched in 2020, provided the ability to quantify the difference in homeschooling between military and civilian households, Watson said. The survey asks participants about their children's school attendance, as well as whether the participants are members of the active-duty military or the National Guard or another reserve component. "What we found was that, indeed, the Pulse does show a high -- almost double -- rate of homeschooling among these families," Watson said. Published as part of Johns Hopkins' Homeschool Hub research aggregator, the analysis found that 12% of active-duty military respondents said their family homeschooled during the 2023-2024 school year. Civilians, on the other hand, did so at a rate of 6%. And while the civilian rate had doubled since prior to the pandemic, the military rate stayed relatively flat, Watson said. Blue Star Families' Military Family Lifestyle Survey reported rates of homeschooling between 11% and 13% going back to 2018. Conventional wisdom suggests that military families might choose to homeschool for the sake of stability amid numerous permanent change-of-station, or PCS, moves or, following a deployment, to "prioritize that time together" over sending a child to school, Watson said. However, she pointed out that those reasons may not fully explain the higher prevalence since National Guard and reserve members also homeschool at a much higher rate than civilians: 11% in 2023-2024, only a percentage point behind the active duty. Natalie Mack, founder of the Military Homeschoolers Association, said stability and time together exemplify what she considers the traditional reasons military families homeschool. She also named what she considers new reasons, including the ability to meet special needs such as neurodivergence and to avoid bullying and the prospect of school violence. Mack said her organization is waiting to see what the Defense Department proposes in response to President Donald Trump's executive order on school choice before weighing in on whether it could benefit homeschoolers. Trump ordered the department to look at ways it could pay for military families "to attend schools of their choice" as soon as next year. Related: Trump Orders DoD to Study School Choice Options for Military Families
Yahoo
19-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Child care shortage might be costing NH businesses $56 million each year, new study finds
From July 2017 to October 2024 in New Hampshire, the number of spaces in licensed child care providers fell almost 13%. (Daria Nipot | Getty Images) New Hampshire businesses may be losing an estimated $56 million because the state's child care shortage is disrupting parents' ability to work, according to a new study from the New Hampshire Fiscal Policy Institute. 'Early childhood care and education is an economic issue, not just a family issue,' said Nicole Heller, a senior policy analyst with NHFPI and the study's lead researcher. 'When parents can't find or afford child care, they are forced to reduce their hours, leave the workforce, or turn down career advancement opportunities. That not only impacts families but also employers struggling to retain and recruit workers.' From July 2017 to October 2024 in New Hampshire, the number of spaces in licensed child care providers fell almost 13% while the number of children under 5 fell only about 1.6%, according to the study, which looked at data from the U.S. Census Bureau, the University of New Hampshire, and the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services. Furthermore, those child care providers may have been operating at only 85% of their fully licensed capacity, as of September, due in part to a labor shortage of child care professionals. Child care workers in the state have a projected turnover rate of 17% annually, according to New Hampshire Employment Security, and they make a median wage of $15.62 an hour, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — less than half of what New Hampshire's kindergarten teachers, who also teach children as young as 5, make. The discrepancy between the number of children in the state and child care capacity has meant New Hampshire families struggle to find accommodations for their kids, which in turn, hampers their ability to fully participate in the workforce, the study said. In 2024, an average of around 17,300 New Hampshire residents reported being out of the labor force each month because they were caring for children not in school or a child care center, according to the study, which examined the U.S. Census Bureau's Household Pulse Survey. That doesn't include the 47% of parents who reported (from August 2023 to August 2024) staying in the workforce but reducing their hours to take care of children. Meanwhile, from August 2023 through August 2024, an estimated average 13% of New Hampshire workers reported leaving their job and 7% reported losing their job to take care of children. This reduced productivity and workplace disruption may have cost New Hampshire businesses between $36 million and $56 million in 2023, the study contended. This resulted in a possible $9 million to $14 million shortfall in state and local tax revenues. Additionally, in 2023, New Hampshire families lost an estimated $114 million to $178 million of earnings because of this shortage, per the study. The issue is not exclusive to the Granite State. In a 2024 survey from the National Association for Education of Young Children, more than half — 56% — of child care center directors across the U.S. reported not being able to operate at full capacity because of staffing shortages, low pay, and families' inability to afford their services. In that survey, 55% of directors said they were aware of at least one child care program closing in their community (and only 30% said they were aware of a new program opening) while 11% said four or more had closed in their community in the past six months. Katherine Ann Edwards, a labor economist who works with the Rand Corporation and writes a column for Bloomberg, wrote that 'America's childcare market is an abject failure.' 'The economics of the industry will never align,' Edwards, who has called for federally funded universal child care, continued. 'For one, parents tend to need childcare at the beginning of their careers, precisely when they can least afford it. Costs stay high because it's labor intensive and hard to scale: One person can take care of only so many kids. Also, because quality care produces broader social benefits that aren't reflected in the price, the market inevitably supplies too little.'
Yahoo
05-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Nearly 70% of Single People Struggle to Afford Housing Payments, Compared to 52% of Married People
Single and divorced people are more likely than people who are married to make certain sacrifices to afford rent and mortgage payments, according to Redfin survey findings SEATTLE, February 05, 2025--(BUSINESS WIRE)--(NASDAQ: RDFN) — Nearly 70% of single, divorced or separated people struggle to afford their regular rent or mortgage payments, compared to just over half (52%) of married people, according to a new report from Redfin ( the technology-powered real estate brokerage. More than three-quarters (76%) of respondents who live with their partner but aren't married struggle with housing payments, making them the group most likely to struggle. Single people have a harder time affording housing payments largely because they're typically using just their own income to pay for housing, while many married couples use two incomes. Roughly three in five (63%) single survey respondents and 69% of divorced respondents have a household income of under $50,000 per year, compared to 26% of married respondents. On the flip side, 29% of married respondents have a household income of $100,000 or over, compared to 7% of those who are single and 6% of those who are divorced. Married couples also receive tax benefits that single people don't get, setting them up better for financial security. "The high cost of housing tends to hit single people hardest because they can't pool resources with a partner to cover the same costs, unless they're willing to have roommates," said Redfin Chief Economist Daryl Fairweather. "Married couples make up a smaller and smaller share of U.S. households, so it's important to include single people living alone or with roommates when examining ways to ease the affordability crisis. People who aren't yet married, or aren't interested in getting married or living with a partner, often have to make more sacrifices to cover their housing costs than their coupled-up counterparts, which is one reason the government should consider zoning for single-room housing, like dormitories, and ADUs." It's worth noting that although most single and married people report struggling to make housing payments, most people pay on time. Just 1 of every 20 homeowners, regardless of marital status (married: 4%, never married: 5%, divorced: 6%), were late on their monthly mortgage payments as of September, according to the U.S. Census Bureau's Household Pulse Survey. Fourteen percent of married renters were late on their rent, compared to 12% of those who have never been married and 15% of those who are divorced. Living alone in a 1-bedroom rental costs tens of thousands more than cohabitating To break down the extra cost of living alone, take Washington, D.C. as an example. More than half of adults in the nation's capital are single, making it one of the U.S. cities with the highest share of single people. A studio or one-bedroom rental in the D.C. metro costs $1,908 per month, according to Redfin data. A single person living alone would cover that whole cost themself, while a married or cohabitating couple might split the rent and pay $954 each. That means a single person would pay $11,448 more per year on housing than someone who lives with their romantic partner. In Los Angeles, one of the most expensive rental markets in the U.S., the typical studio or one-bedroom apartment rents for $2,480 per month, or $1,240 when split in two. A single person making payments alone would pay an extra $14,880 per year. Single, divorced people more likely to skip meals to make housing payments Single people are more likely than married couples to make certain sacrifices to pay for housing. Of those who struggle to afford housing payments, more than one-quarter (27%) of divorced or separated people and 21% of single people report skipping meals completely to pay for housing, compared to 14% of married people. Non-married people are also slightly more likely than married couples to borrow money from family or friends to make housing payments, and to work side hustles. Single and divorced renters are more likely to cite lack of affordability as a reason they won't be purchasing a home anytime soon. This is according to a Redfin-commissioned survey conducted by Ipsos in September 2024. The survey was fielded to 1,802 U.S. residents aged 18-65. To view the full report, including a chart, metro-level data, and additional methodology, please visit: About Redfin Redfin ( is a technology-powered real estate company. We help people find a place to live with brokerage, rentals, lending, and title insurance services. We run the country's #1 real estate brokerage site. Our customers can save thousands in fees while working with a top agent. Our home-buying customers see homes first with on-demand tours, and our lending and title services help them close quickly. Our rentals business empowers millions nationwide to find apartments and houses for rent. Since launching in 2006, we've saved customers more than $1.6 billion in commissions. We serve approximately 100 markets across the U.S. and Canada and employ over 4,000 people. Redfin's subsidiaries and affiliated brands include: Bay Equity Home Loans®, Rent.™, Apartment Guide®, Title Forward® and WalkScore®. For more information or to contact a local Redfin real estate agent, visit To learn about housing market trends and download data, visit the Redfin Data Center. To be added to Redfin's press release distribution list, email press@ To view Redfin's press center, click here. View source version on Contacts Contact RedfinRedfin Journalist Services:Ally Forsell, 206-588-6863press@ Melden Sie sich an, um Ihr Portfolio aufzurufen.
