Table 1: Housing Unit Estimates for the 100 Fastest-Growing Counties With 5,000 or More Housing Units: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2019
| Rank | Geographic Area | April 1, 2010 | July 1, 2019 | Change, 2010 to 2019 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Estimates Base | Estimate | Number | Percent | ||
| 55 | Benton County, Arkansas | 93,093 | 112,183 | 19,090 | 20.5 |
| 96 | Craighead County, Arkansas | 40,516 | 46,934 | 6,418 | 15.8 |
Table 1 shows the only two Arkansas counties that rank among the U.S. Census Bureau’s estimates of the 100 fastest growing U.S. counties with 5,000 or more housing units for 2010- 2019. Benton County ranked 55, increased its housing units 20.5% from 93,093 in 2010 to 112,183 in 2019, while Craighead County, ranked 96, went from 40,516 to 46,934 housing units, an increase of 15.8%.
Table 2: Housing Unit Estimates for the 100 Fastest-Growing Counties With 5,000 or More Housing Units: July 1, 2018 to July 1, 2019
| Rank | Geographic Area | Housing Unit Estimate | Change, 2018 to 2019 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| July 1, 2018 | July 2, 2019 | Number | Percent | ||
| 24 | Benton County, Arkansas | 108370 | 112183 | 3813 | 3.5 |
Table 3: Annual Estimates of Housing Units for Counties in Arkansas: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2019
| Geographic Area | April 1, 2010 | Housing Unit Estimate (as of July 1) | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Estimates Base | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | |
| .Benton County, Arkansas | 221339 | 221348 | 222593 | 229171 | 234938 | 239461 | 244841 | 251591 | 259212 | 266585 | 272266 | 279141 |
| ..Percent change | 2.96% | 2.52% | 1.93% | 2.25% | 2.76% | 3.03% | 2.84% | 2.13% | 2.53% | |||
| .Craighead County, Arkansas | 96443 | 96443 | 96748 | 98405 | 99993 | 101653 | 102661 | 104457 | 105932 | 107188 | 108816 | 110332 |
| ..Percent change | 1.71% | 1.61% | 1.66% | 0.99% | 1.75% | 1.41% | 1.19% | 1.52% | 1.39% | |||
| .Saline County, Arkansas | 107118 | 107135 | 107656 | 109553 | 111442 | 113348 | 114874 | 116390 | 117656 | 119520 | 121074 | 122437 |
| ..Percent change | 1.76% | 1.72% | 1.71% | 1.35% | 1.32% | 1.09% | 1.58% | 1.3% | 1.13% | |||
| .Lonoke County, Arkansas | 68356 | 68382 | 68744 | 69529 | 70109 | 70742 | 71368 | 71359 | 71803 | 72778 | 73391 | 73309 |
| ..Percent change | 1.14% | 0.83% | 0.9% | 0.88% | -0.01% | 0.62% | 1.36% | 0.84% | -0.11% | |||
| .Washington County, Arkansas | 203065 | 203050 | 204024 | 208051 | 211756 | 216000 | 219941 | 224434 | 228482 | 232732 | 236611 | 239187 |
| ..Percent change | 1.97% | 1.78% | 2% | 1.82% | 2.04% | 1.8% | 1.86% | 1.67% | 1.09% | |||
| .Clay County, Arkansas | 16083 | 16083 | 16050 | 15876 | 15710 | 15484 | 15299 | 15206 | 15060 | 14865 | 14763 | 14551 |
| ..Percent change | -1.08% | -1.05% | -1.44% | -1.19% | -0.61% | -0.96% | -1.29% | -0.69% | -1.44% | |||
| .Ouachita County, Arkansas | 26120 | 26128 | 26046 | 25737 | 25398 | 24948 | 24761 | 24316 | 24013 | 23817 | 23620 | 23382 |
| ..Percent change | -1.19% | -1.32% | -1.77% | -0.75% | -1.8% | -1.25% | -0.82% | -0.83% | -1.01% | |||
| .Woodruff County, Arkansas | 7260 | 7264 | 7236 | 7164 | 7052 | 7018 | 6860 | 6706 | 6600 | 6575 | 6466 | 6320 |
| ..Percent change | -1% | -1.56% | -0.48% | -2.25% | -2.24% | -1.58% | -0.38% | -1.66% | -2.26% | |||
| .Monroe County, Arkansas | 8149 | 8155 | 8138 | 8099 | 7854 | 7690 | 7634 | 7452 | 7205 | 7013 | 6880 | 6701 |
| ..Percent change | -0.48% | -3.03% | -2.09% | -0.73% | -2.38% | -3.31% | -2.66% | -1.9% | -2.6% | |||
| .Bradley County, Arkansas | 11508 | 11505 | 11470 | 11432 | 11266 | 11120 | 11007 | 10999 | 10959 | 10813 | 10838 | 10763 |
| ..Percent change | -0.33% | -1.45% | -1.3% | -1.02% | -0.07% | -0.36% | -1.33% | 0.23% | -0.69% |
Drawn from the Census Bureau estimates for the increase in housing units in each U.S. County, Table 3 contrasts the five Arkansas counties that had the largest estimated gain in housing units between 2010 and 2019, with the five counties which consistently lost housing units over the same period. Benton County, with a 20.2% increase in housing units since 2010, tops the list of counties with significant growth, followed by Craighead, 15.6%; Saline, 10.3%; Lonoke, 10.2%; and Washington, 9.5%.
Bradley County suffered a 0.8% loss in housing units from 2010-2019, the largest percentage loss of among the five counties and the largest loss of any county in Arkansas. Monroe County was close behind with a 0.6% loss, followed by Woodruff, 0.4%, Ouachita, 0.3% and Clay, 0.2%.
Benton County is the only county in the state that experienced a steady increase in the growth rate of housing units over the ten year period. Between 2010 and 2011 its housing units grew only by 0.8%, but from 2016 to 2019 the county growth rate stayed well above 2.0%, reaching 3.52% in 2019.
Additional links:
- Arkansas State Data Center Webiste
- For additional data from Arkansas be sure to check out Arkanstats
