Washington Is Growing Really Fast: Report

SEATTLE - Washington is growing — and fast. In fact, we were the fourth fastest growing state in the country, according to a new new report published last week by the personal finance site 24/7 Wall St.

In order to identify the fastest growing and shrinking states, the researchers reviewed net population change by state from July 2016 to July 2017. While the U.S. population grew by about 0.7 percent in the time frame, some states grew at twice that rate and others saw their population actually drop.

Washington saw its population grow 1.71 percent over those 12 months, the authors found. Its current population is about 7.4 million and the median home value increased by about 10.6 percent.

Here’s what the authors had to say specifically about Washington:

Over 90,000 more people moved to Washington state than left between 2016 and 2017, and there were 34,000 more births than deaths in the state over the same period. Washington’s growing population has brought more job seekers to an already strained labor market. The state’s annual unemployment rate stands at 4.8%, well above the 4.4% national unemployment rate in 2017.

New residents are also likely driving up real estate prices in an already expensive state. The typical home in Washington is worth $339,000, 10.6% more than the median value of $306,400 in 2016.

States in the West dominated the growth list, nabbing the top four spots. Idaho was named the fastest growing state in the country and saw its population grow by 2.2 percent to about 1.7 million. The authors noted the vast majority of new residents in Idaho moved there from other states. And they’re particularly interested in the state’s capital of Boise, where the tech sector is growing.

“Several factors are drawing Americans to the state. For one, Idaho is relatively affordable. Goods and services are 7 percent less expensive in the state than the they are nationwide on average — a lower cost of living than in any of the six states Idaho borders,” the authors wrote.

Here are the five fastest growing states:

1. Idaho
2. Nevada
3. Utah
4. Washington
5. Florida

On the flip side, Wyoming earned the dubious honor of being named the fastest shrinking state. The state, with an overall population of about 579,000, actually saw its population decline by almost 5,600. That’s nearly .5 percent. The typical Wyoming home also increased in value by about 2.3 percent — among the lowest in the country.

West Virginia, Illinois, Alaska and Hawaii rounded out the bottom five. In each of the fastest shrinking states, people moving out drove the population decline, the authors noted, with West Virginia being the only state to report more deaths than births.

The researchers said population decline appears “closely tied” to the overall economy.

“Wyoming and West Virginia are the only states with declining populations to report faster annual GDP growth than the U.S. growth of 2.3 percent. Meanwhile, five of the eight fastest growing states reported faster than national GDP growth,” the report said.

The researchers used data from the U.S. Census Bureau, Bureau of Economic Analysis and Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Patch national staffer Dan Hampton contributed to this report.

Image via Neal McNamara/Patch