Economy
Charlotte by the Numbers: Demographic and Economic
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Charlotte, North Carolina, where Keith Scott was fatally shot by a police officer, leading to violent protests, had a population of 762,199 according to the last Census.
It has a high poverty rate, at 17.3%; a median household income of $53,657, which close to the national average; and a black American population of 35% of residents, well above the national average. Men make up 371,519 of the population and women 403,288. Some 7.2% of the population is under five years old, and 1.1% are 86 years or older.
The median age of the population in Charlotte is 34.2 years. It has 319,918 housing units, of which 30,058, or 9.4%, are vacant. Owner-occupied units are 289,860, or 54.7% of units. And 42.6% are rented.
Some 16.5% of the population has less than a high school education, 24.5% have a high school degree (or equivalent) and 15.1% have a bachelor’s degree or better.
Charlotte is home to 81,973 companies. The civilian employed population that is 16 years and older is 386,248. Professional, scientific, management and administrative, and waste management services jobs total 52,478. Financial services jobs total 40,580. The retail trade employs 41,498. Health care jobs total 44,808. Education services jobs total 28,910.
Carolinas Healthcare System is the largest employer in the city at approximately 35,000. Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC) is second at about 22,000, followed by Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools at 18,143, Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT) is at 16,100, Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: BAC) at roughly 15,000 and Lowe’s Companies Inc. (NYSE: LOW) at 12,960, according to the city’s 2014 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report.
The racial breakdown:
| Population | 731,424 | 100.0% |
| One Race | 712,020 | 97.3% |
| White | 365,384 | 50.0% |
| Black or African American | 256,241 | 35.0% |
| American Indian and Alaska Native | 3,483 | 0.5% |
| Asian | 36,403 | 5.0% |
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Income breakdown:
| Less than $10,000 | 7.2% |
| $10,000 to $14,999 | 4.8% |
| $15,000 to $24,999 | 10.1% |
| $25,000 to $34,999 | 10.7% |
| $35,000 to $49,999 | 14.3% |
| $50,000 to $74,999 | 18.2% |
| $75,000 to $99,999 | 11.5% |
| $100,000 to $149,999 | 11.8% |
| $150,000 to $199,999 | 4.9% |
| $200,000 or more | 6.4% |
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Note that Charlotte recently was featured in 24/7 Wall St.’s American Cities Adding the Most Jobs and also the 25 Most American Cities list.
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