ST. LOUIS — While the city of St. Louis continues to lose population, the people who are here are making more money.
The share of city residents making $100,000 or more increased to 18% from 12% five years ago, according to the most recent census estimates released Thursday. At the same time, city residents making $25,000 or less now account for just 30% of the population, compared to 38% five years ago.
Travis Sheridan, president of Venture Cafe Global Institute, said he thinks the salaries of medical professionals provide a strong foundation for income in St. Louis, "and then the growth might be associated with tech."
Sheridan lives in Old North St. Louis and runs the institute out of offices in the Cortex district.
A report from the Missouri Chamber of Commerce earlier this year ranked Missouri 12th in the nation in percentage growth in tech-sector jobs over the last five years. Sheridan said he has heard from friends and associates working in tech that salaries for programmers and developers who come to St. Louis to work start between $85,000 and $115,000.
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The Census Bureau's release covers income, poverty and health insurance coverage. The median household income in St. Louis was $43,889, up $2,448 (or 6%) from $41,441 the year before. The numbers are not adjusted for inflation.
Nationwide, median income is up by $1,600 year over year, while the poverty rate and percentage of Americans not covered by health insurance remained flat.Â
St. Louis is attracting young professionals in tech because of its affordability, said Ness Sandoval, an associate professor of sociology at St. Louis University.
Sandoval tracks migration trends in and out of the city and St. Louis area. He said  both have seen a net gain in white residents, and a loss of black residents since the 2014 shooting of Michael Brown Jr. in Ferguson.
"Where we show white residents coming to the city, it's people from the East and West coast wanting to make the city itself their home," Sandoval said. "I think it's because it's a younger population, so those cities are just not as affordable compared to St. Louis." He mentioned Boston, New York, Washington, San Francisco and Denver as examples of cities where the cost of living can be too high for young professionals.
But the boon in employment and income isn't spread equally throughout the city, Sandoval suspects. He said much of the money being invested in the city's developments is going into the area between the Central West End and the downtown area.Â
When the 2020 census is complete, Sandoval said he thinks "the numbers will show that north St. Louis is still losing population." Collection for the 2020 census begins on April 1.
Don Roe, executive director of Planning and Urban Design for St. Louis, said the city is getting younger, which could be the cause for  its changing income levels.Â
Low-income residents are also finding new ways to make more money, with the growth of the gig economy.
"I've been in neighborhood meetings where folks were talking about how they were supplementing their income with the gig economy, and those meetings were in a very poor census tract," Roe said.Â
In addition, Sheridan said, local programs are helping low-income populations make more money.
"Some of that might be skill development and growth, with training programs going into place," Sheridan said. As people gain skills, chances are better they'll find a higher-paying job.
Roe believes St. Louis is the place for young professionals in the Midwest, and developers are ready to tap into the market.
"If you go look for homes or condos for sale in that (central) corridor, such as Ballpark Village, you just see that's what the private market is telling us," Sandoval said. "You have people with income who are coming in to buy these places that are very expensive. That was not the case 10 years ago."Â
TABLE: Changes in household median income
Geography | 2018 median income | $ change from 5 years ago | % change from 5 years ago |
---|---|---|---|
St. Louis city, Missouri | 43889 | 9401 | 27.3% |
US | 61937 | 9687 | 18.5% |
St. Charles County | 81663 | 11526 | 16.4% |
Missouri | 54478 | 7547 | 16.1% |
Illinois | 65030 | 8820 | 15.7% |
St. Louis metro area | 62790 | 8341 | 15.3% |
St. Louis County | 66778 | 7488 | 12.6% |