South Central Connecticut Planning Region, CT
County Profile
570,598 residents. Jobs, income, housing cost, climate and natural-hazard risk for South Central Connecticut Planning Region, CT.
How this area ranks
Data updated · 11 sourcesEmployment conditions sit below most comparable counties measured: unemployment is 5.9% and the Opportunity signal places South Central Connecticut Planning Region in the bottom 16%.
783 housing units were authorized over the past twelve months, within 9% of the prior year — steady rather than turning.
Rent takes 32% of renter income here, above the 30% threshold conventionally called cost-burdened, and the median home is 2.9 times what its owners earn.
These sentences are written by fixed rules from the measurements below — a statement appears because a number crossed a stated threshold, and the values behind it are stored with it. No figure anywhere on this site is invented, estimated or inferred to fill a gap. How this works.
At a glance
Jobs & opportunity
Unemployment of 5.9% — higher than in all but 8% of the 1,467 measured US counties.
Employment fell 4.0% over the past year, to 285,826 employed residents.
42% of adults hold a four-year degree, higher than 93% of measured US counties.
Median household income of $88,197 is higher than in 89% of measured US counties.
| Metric | Value | Compared nationally | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Income of new arrivalsfiling years 2022–2023 | $74,908 | 78th percentileof 1,417 | filing years 2022–2023 |
| Income of those who leftfiling years 2022–2023 | $83,737 | 89th percentileof 1,417 | filing years 2022–2023 |
| Median household income ±$1,6922024 ACS 5-Year | $88,197 | Top 11%of 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Per capita income ±$7452024 ACS 5-Year | $49,766 | Top 7%of 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Poverty rate ±0.6%2024 ACS 5-Year | 10.5% | Top 31%of 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Average commute ±0.4 min2024 ACS 5-Year | 25.2 min | Top 47%of 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Bachelor's degree or higher ±0.8%2024 ACS 5-Year | 42.0% | Top 7%of 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Drove alone to work ±0.8%2024 ACS 5-Year | 69.4% | 13th percentileof 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| EmploymentJuly 2026 | 285,826 | Top 8%of 1,467 | July 2026 |
| Employment change (3 years)July 2026 | −4.5% | Bottom 9%of 1,467 | July 2026 |
| Employment change (year over year)July 2026 | −4.0% | Bottom 6%of 1,467 | July 2026 |
| Labor forceJuly 2026 | 303,898 | 92nd percentileof 1,467 | July 2026 |
| Labor force participation ±0.5%2024 ACS 5-Year | 82.4% | Top 16%of 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Public transit to work ±0.3%2024 ACS 5-Year | 3.0% | 97th percentileof 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Unemployment change (year over year)July 2026 | +1.4% | Bottom 1%of 1,467 | July 2026 |
| Unemployment rateJuly 2026 | 5.9% | Bottom 8%of 1,467 | July 2026 |
| Worked from home ±0.7%2024 ACS 5-Year | 14.3% | 85th percentileof 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
Unemployment rate
Median household income, successive ACS releases
Largest occupations — New Haven, CT
| Occupation | People employed | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| Registered Nurses | 10,050 | $104,490 |
| Stockers and Order Fillers | 9,430 | $43,840 |
| Home Health and Personal Care Aides | 7,370 | $39,720 |
| Retail Salespersons | 6,810 | $35,950 |
| Janitors and Cleaners, Except Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners | 6,210 | $37,890 |
| Fast Food and Counter Workers | 5,900 | $35,290 |
Searches the 40 largest occupations here that have a published wage.
Occupational employment and wages are published for metropolitan areas rather than for individual cities or ZIP areas, so these describe the wider labor market this location sits in. 2025 OEWS, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
40% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 53% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.
There are 12.2 students for every full-time teacher across 147 public schools, fewer than in most measured places.
| School | District | Students | Per teacher | Math | Reading |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Haven High School | West Haven School District | 1,813 | 15.6 | 17% | 46% |
| Wilbur Cross High School | New Haven School District | 1,742 | 13.7 | 9% | 30% |
| Hamden High School | Hamden School District | 1,609 | 13.5 | 33% | 55% |
| Amity Regional High School | Regional School District 05 | 1,347 | 11.1 | 63% | 81% |
| Francis T. Maloney High School | Meriden School District | 1,291 | 16.3 | 14% | 40% |
| Orville H. Platt High School | Meriden School District | 1,191 | 17.5 | 10% | 38% |
| James Hillhouse High School | New Haven School District | 1,124 | 13.4 | 3% | 17% |
| Amistad Academy · charter | Amistad Academy District | 1,105 | 10.8 | 47% | 55% |
| Guilford High School | Guilford School District | 1,008 | 11.9 | 68% | 85% |
| North Haven High School | North Haven School District | 944 | 11.1 | 38% | 66% |
| Lyman Hall High School | Wallingford School District | 936 | 10.5 | 39% | 70% |
| Harry M. Bailey Middle School | West Haven School District | 885 | 10.1 | 39% | 47% |
51.3% of students here are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. That describes the circumstances families arrive with, not how the schools perform, so it is shown and not scored.
Public schools only, from the NCES Common Core of Data, placed by ZIP code — which schools are in this place, not which one a particular address is zoned for. A dash in a proficiency column is a gap in the federal file, not a bad result. Proficiency is measured against Connecticut’s own standard, so it is ranked within state. How to read school figures.
Housing & affordability
How it’s calculated — housing affordability →Prices for everything a household buys run about 5% above the national average — the Bureau of Economic Analysis index reads 105.4, against 100 for the nation. Nationally, housing drives most of the spread between places in this index; other goods vary far less.
The Federal Housing Finance Agency’s house price index for the New Haven, CT Metro Area is up 55% over five years, and up 6.0% over the last year. It follows repeat sales of the same homes, so it measures price change rather than which homes happened to sell.
Homeowners here who pay a tax bill pay a median of $6,759 a year in real estate taxes, about 1.91% of the median home value.
The typical renter household here spends 32% of its income on rent, above the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $1,525 a month.
A median home at $353,100 costs 2.9 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $122,844, close to the historic benchmark for an affordable market.
Prices here run about 5% above the national average. The spread between places is driven mostly by housing — goods vary far less — and this excludes taxes.
Published for the New Haven, CT Metro Area as a whole. Prices are regional — people shop, commute and rent across a metropolitan area rather than within a city boundary — so this describes the cost of living around this place better than a figure drawn to its own limits would.
The figures above are measured against South Central Connecticut Planning Region’s median household income of $88,197, which describes the place rather than you. Enter your own and the ratio is recomputed against it. It stays in this browser.
| Metric | Value | Compared nationally | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost of living indexthe New Haven, CT Metro Area’s figure2023 | 105.4 | Bottom 12%of 887 | 2023 |
| Home price change (1 year)the New Haven, CT Metro Area’s figure2026 Q2 | +6.0% | 88th percentileof 1,431 | 2026 Q2 |
| Home price change (5 years)the New Haven, CT Metro Area’s figure2026 Q2 | +54.9% | 86th percentileof 1,431 | 2026 Q2 |
| Home price change (10 years)the New Haven, CT Metro Area’s figure2026 Q2 | +91.2% | 46th percentileof 1,431 | 2026 Q2 |
| Home price to income ±0.12024 ACS 5-Year | 2.9 | Bottom 33%of 3,218 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Homeownership rate ±0.9%2024 ACS 5-Year | 60.5% | 7th percentileof 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Housing units ±1872024 ACS 5-Year | 248,267 | 96th percentileof 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Median gross rent ±$242024 ACS 5-Year | $1,525 | Bottom 7%of 3,216 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Median home value ±$3,8432024 ACS 5-Year | $353,100 | 88th percentileof 3,219 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Median property taxes ±$622024 ACS 5-Year | $6,759 | 99th percentileof 3,172 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Owner household income ±$2,5432024 ACS 5-Year | $122,844 | Top 5%of 3,218 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Property tax rate ±0.03%2024 ACS 5-Year | 1.91% | 97th percentileof 3,126 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Rent as a share of income ±0.9%2024 ACS 5-Year | 31.9% | Bottom 15%of 3,217 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Seasonal and second homes ±4902024 ACS 5-Year | 3,613 | 91st percentileof 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year | 1.5% | 34th percentileof 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year | 5.6% | 22nd percentileof 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Vacant housing units ±1,1702024 ACS 5-Year | 17,594 | 96th percentileof 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
These measures come from the same ACS release as the income they are compared with. They compare housing cost with local earnings only: transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes are not in them. How to read affordability, the two rent figures and the cost-of-living index.
Growth & development
How it’s calculated — growth →Development Momentum
An AreaProfile calculation combining permit volume per resident, its direction over one and three years, population change and employment growth. Permit volume alone is not the measure.
Population has grown 2% since 2020, reaching 576,718 in 2024.
67% of the 783 units permitted over the past twelve months are in buildings of five or more homes, so new supply is concentrated in apartments and condominiums rather than detached houses.
Federal tax returns show South Central Connecticut Planning Region lost about 0.4% of its residents through moves within the US in the most recent year, counting those who arrived against those who left. Households that moved in reported an average income of $74,908, below the $83,737 of households that moved out.
At 1.4 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is below the median for measured US counties.
Population, annual estimates
People moving in and out
Where newcomers came from
- Naugatuck Valley Planning Region, CT 2,326 people · 12% of arrivals
- Greater Bridgeport Planning Region, CT 2,248 people · 11% of arrivals
- Capitol Planning Region, CT 1,719 people · 8.6% of arrivals
- Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region, CT 1,100 people · 5.5% of arrivals
- Western Connecticut Planning Region, CT 1,072 people · 5.4% of arrivals
Where people who left went
- Naugatuck Valley Planning Region, CT 2,715 people · 13% of departures
- Capitol Planning Region, CT 2,229 people · 10% of departures
- Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region, CT 1,574 people · 7.3% of departures
- Greater Bridgeport Planning Region, CT 1,273 people · 5.9% of departures
- Western Connecticut Planning Region, CT 720 people · 3.3% of departures
Based on the address on federal tax returns, compared with the same filers a year earlier. It counts people who file, and sees a move only when the address on a return changes. Domestic moves only: people arriving from abroad are left out. IRS Statistics of Income, filing years 2022–2023.
Housing units permitted per year
Weather & climate
5 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 82°F and January a low of 23°F.
Normal annual precipitation is 41.8 inches.
Precipitation
| Metric | Value | Source period |
|---|---|---|
| Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals | 41.8" | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Average January low1991-2020 Normals | 23°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Average July high1991-2020 Normals | 82°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals | 5 | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals | 43°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. How to read climate and air quality.
Physical risk
The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, hurricane and coastal flooding, with inland flooding alone responsible for 62% of it.
Low or minimal exposure: lightning, winter weather, strong wind, tornado, cold wave, wildfire, hail, drought, volcanic activity, tsunami, avalanche.
Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). These are FEMA’s own figures for this county rather than a value derived from surrounding geographies. FEMA does not endorse this presentation. Higher physical resilience means lower exposure.
What this profile does not cover
Each of these is absent for a reason, not by oversight. The Area Score is calculated without them; the weighting is on the methodology page.
- Reported crime
- Offenses reported to police are published by department rather than by town, so AreaProfile shows a rate only on city profiles, and only where that city’s department submitted every month of a year. City profiles inside this area carry their own figure where their department reported a full year. A partial year is never scaled up to look complete, and arrest counts or news volume are never substituted for it.
- Death-certificate rates
- The CDC publishes these rates by county, and no county figure could be attached to this page.
- Air quality
- The EPA publishes an air-quality index only where a monitor sits. There is none in this county, and a modeled value would be a different kind of number from the measured ones everywhere else on this page.
- Taxes
- Income and sales taxes are not published: no source covers them nationally with a method open enough to check. Property taxes are shown in the housing section but are not part of the score. The cost-of-living index above is a price level for all consumption, not a household budget, and it excludes taxes. Nothing here is individualized tax advice.
- Anything about a specific address
- Every figure describes an area, not a street or a house.
Access
7 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest Bradley Intl at 46 miles.
| Metric | Value | Compared nationally | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Broadband access ±0.5%2024 ACS 5-Year | 92.4% | Top 12%of 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Distance to major airportNASR current cycle | 46 mi | Bottom 35%of 1,463 | NASR current cycle |
| Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle | 7 | Top 5%of 1,463 | NASR current cycle |
| No internet access ±0.4%2024 ACS 5-Year | 5.4% | Top 13%of 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Airport | Code | Distance | Longest runway |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bradley Intl | BDL | 46 mi | 9,510 ft |
| Westfield-Barnes Rgnl | BAF | 60 mi | 9,000 ft |
| Westover ARB/Metro | CEF | 64 mi | 11,597 ft |
Airport identity, position and runway data come from the FAA. “Major airport” is an AreaProfile classification — a public-use civil airport with a paved runway of at least 8,000 feet — not an FAA hub designation. Distances are straight-line, not driving distance.
Customize your score
What matters to you?
Choose what you weight most heavily. Nothing is saved to an account — your preferences stay in this browser, and the Area Score never changes.
Select one or more priorities to see how this location scores against them.
Similar places
Matched on AreaProfile signals, not geographyData & methodology
| Used for | Source | Source period |
|---|---|---|
| Access | Federal Aviation Administration Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service | NASR current cycle |
| Physical risk | Federal Emergency Management Agency National Risk Index | National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0) |
| Demographics, Income | Internal Revenue Service, Statistics of Income Division U.S. Population Migration Data (county to county) | filing years 2022–2023 |
| Climate | NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly) | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Housing | U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional price parities and county personal income | 2023 |
| Jobs | U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Local Area Unemployment Statistics | July 2026 |
| Development | U.S. Census Bureau Building Permits Survey | 12 months ending July 2026 |
| Access, Demographics, Housing, Income, Jobs | U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File) | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Demographics | U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program | July 1, 2024 estimate |
| Schools | U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data and EDFacts assessments | 2018-19 school year; 2024-25 school year |
| Housing | U.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency House Price Index (traditional, all-transactions) | 2026 Q2 |
| Current conditions | NOAA National Weather Service National Weather Service current conditions | Live observation, read when the page opens |
Profile recalculated September 26, 2026. Recalculation is not the same as new source data — each figure above shows the period its source actually covers. Read the full methodology, or every source with how often each updates.
Cities in South Central Connecticut Planning Region, CT
ZIP areas
Only ZIP areas whose income or home value differ from their city’s by at least ten percent get a profile of their own, so this is a selection rather than every ZIP code in the county.