In Search of Rural - How Varying Definitions Shape Housing Research

In this paper, we show that the choice of rural definition can matter immensely for estimates of the size of the rural housing market, the demographic and housing composition of rural areas, and the magnitude of its housing challenges. [...] The size of the rural housing market in the US varies considerably with the definition and typology chosen, with estimates of the population living in rural areas ranging from a fraction (1.4 percent) to about one-third in 2019. [...] The first considers census tracts rural where the primary commuting flow is to rural areas only.15 The second considers census tracts rural where the primary commuting flow is to a rural area or small town.16 14 In the RUCC documentation, this comprises codes 8 and 9, a fairly restrictive definition of rural using the RUCC definition, creating a lower-bound estimate of rural in many cases. [...] At the other end of the spectrum, the USDA policy definition of rural, which often produces the largest rural population in each state, suggests that at least 13 percent of each state’s population lives in a rural area and more than half of the population lives in a rural area in fully 19 states. [...] Indeed, the share of the population age 65 and over ranged from 17.9 percent in the USDA definition with the largest rural population to 21.9 percent in the RUCC definition which had the smallest rural population.