Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Please be patient. I'm going to have to do this in more than 1 post. Please don’t comment until I get all 3 posts done so they stay together.
I did a fresh comparison of 40 Tennessee towns/cities because the 2010 census happened since the last thread on this subject in 2007. The data was updated in 2014. Basically, this is for the people who still haven’t settled on where in Tennessee they want to live. The 40 towns/cities are:
Knoxville
Chattanooga
Nashville/Davidson
Memphis
--------------------------
Alcoa
Brentwood
Bristol
Clarksville
Cleveland
Cookeville
Crossville
Franklin
Gatlinburg
Germantown
Greeneville
Harriman
Hendersonville
Jackson
Jefferson City
Johnson City
Kingsport
Kingston
LaFollette
Maryville
McMinnville
Morristown
Murfreesboro
Norris
Oak Ridge
Pigeon Forge
Pikeville
Seymour
Sevierville
Signal Mountain
Smyrna
Sparta
Townsend
Tullahoma
White House
Winchester
Why these 40 towns? They were names I could think of off the top of my head. Why these many? I used the same towns I used in 2007 but added 3 more to make an even 40. For the sake of this effort, I will use the term city and town interchangeably. Tennessee towns not on the list were not considered.
After you look at this information, you really should look up the same information for the town/city where you live now. Some of these places may appear to have high/low numbers but you’d probably be surprised to find out the numbers for the town you live in now.
Note: Median means when all the data are lined up from low to high, it’s the number in the middle.
PEOPLE
POPULATION DENSITY
The population density number is arrived at by dividing the square miles of a town into the population. While it can be an indicator of overcrowding or traffic, consider that in towns with low population density and with a large amount of land (as opposed to less people), the government may own a big chunk of it making it not accessible to people for living. It actually feels more dense than numbers used to determine “lowest” indicate. Also, tourist towns may have a low population density number (due to a small number of residents) but plenty of traffic.
Highest Population Density: Memphis, Murfreesboro, Germantown, Knoxville, Hendersonville. Lowest Population Density: Norris, Oak Ridge, Townsend, Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge
AGE
When you decide on a town, you may be interested in where the young people live, if you are a younger person and where older people live if you are an older person. You also might want to consider where a school budget might be voted down if you have young children.
Of the cities looked at, the youngest towns based on median age of its residents are:
1. Clarksville 28.6
2. Cookeville 29.3
3. Murfreesboro 29.3
4. Jefferson City 31.6
5. Smyrna 32.9
Of the cities looked at, the oldest towns based on median age of its residents are:
The national median age is 37.2 (down slightly from 2007).
MARRIED
Towns with the highest percentage of currently married people and are well above the National Average of 49.23 percent (way down from 2007) are:
1. Brentwood 73.16%
2. Germantown 66.65%
3. Seymour 64.51%
4. Signal Mountain 64.51%
5. White House 63.76%
Towns with the lowest percentage of currently married people:
1. Memphis 31.9%
2. Jefferson City 35.31%
3. Knoxville 36.7%
4. Cookeville 37.53%
5. Smyrna 37.99%
WHERE HAVE ALL OF THE MEN GONE?
Men are 49.18% of the US population. There are only 3 towns on the list of 40 where the men outnumber the women. They are Seymour, Kingston, Alcoa.
WHICH TOWN ON THE LIST HAS THE HIGHEST PERCENTAGE OF HISPANICS?
Morristown, with 19.37% (up from 16.05% in 2007) of its population, is higher than the national average of 16.35% (up from 12.73% in 2007). It is the only Tennessee town higher than the National average. The only other Tennessee towns on the list with double digit percentages of Hispanics: McMinnville (13.66%), Sevierville (11.39%), Pikeville (10.70%) and Gatlinburg (10.31%).
EDUCATION
HOW EDUCATED ARE THE PEOPLE WHO LIVE IN THE TOWN?
Note: Only people over age 25 are counted. Also, note that this section does not speak at all to the town’s educational system since people who live in the town and are over 25 are not necessarily people who went to school there. In other words, this category should not be used to determine where the best/worst schools are located.
The national percent of people with doctorate degrees is 1.12%.
These towns on the list have the highest percentage of residents with doctorate degrees:
1. Norris 5.34%
2. Oak Ridge 5.28%
3. Signal Mountain 4.81%
4. Brentwood 3.04%
5. Johnson City 2.94%
The national percent of people over 25 with no high school diploma/GED is 14.28%.
Which towns on the list have the highest percentage of people over 25 with no high school diploma/GED?
There are 15 more towns on the list of 40 with a higher percentage of dropouts than the national percent. They are: Chattanooga (16.94%), Memphis (17.67%), Alcoa (15.58%), Bristol (19.36%), Cleveland (16.2%), Cookeville (14.65%), Crossville (21.35%), Gatlinburg (20.06%), Greeneville (19.7%), Harriman (24.4%), Jackson (14.73%), Jefferson City (14.96%), Pigeon Forge (25.42%), Sevierville (22.42%), Winchester (22.96%).
Part II Coming Up
Last edited by LauraC; 08-31-2014 at 05:23 PM..
Reason: formatting
Since it is unlikely that towns/cities would have the exact same percentages as neighboring towns. it appears that in both voting and religion categories, the data are gathered by county.
Voting
Which towns on the list have a higher percentage of Democrats over Republicans?
Only 3 on the list of 40 towns are Democrat towns: Memphis (62.635%), Nashville/Davidson (58.447%), Germantown (62.635%).
All of the other towns on the list are Republican dominant but where are the least amount of Democrats?
1. Sevierville 21.09%
2. Pigeon Forge 21.9%
3. Seymour 21.905%
4. Cleveland 22.348%
5. Jefferson City 24.102%
The national percent of Democrats is 51.06%.
Religion
Where are the most and least religious people living? By religious we’re talking about people who affiliate with a religion.
48.78% are affiliated with a religion, nationally (down from 50.03% in 2007).
Least religious towns on the list:
1. Pikeville 22.69%
2. LaFollette 36.48%
3. Smyrna 38.4%
3. Murfreesboro 38.4%
5. White House 45.68%
5. Hendersonville 45.68%
Most religious towns on the list:
1. Morristown 66.54%
2. Jackson 65.52%
3. Oak Ridge 65.69%
3. Norris 65.69%
5. Harriman 63.46%
5. Kingston 63.46%
SHOW ME THE MONEY
Poor people can’t stand to live near rich people and rich people can’t stand to live near poor people, or so I’ve read in the forums, so you should know the poorest and richest towns on the list. Note: Things that can decrease median household income numbers in towns (especially small towns) you wouldn’t necessarily eyeball as low income are a university/college in the town, a large concentration of retirees, a large military base.
The US median household income is $53,046 (up from $44,684 in 2007).
Of the towns on the list, the highest median household incomes are:
1. Brentwood $133, 304
2. Germantown $114,520
3. Signal Mountain $81,302
4. Franklin $79,894
5. White House $67,888
Note: The above is the exact same order as 2007 with everyone up some.
Of the towns on the list, the lowest median household incomes are:
I don’t know if these numbers are worth the page they are written on since crimes (property crimes) are not pursued the same across the board. Also, tourist towns and big cities with a lot of visitors tend to rate poorly because while the criminal act is counted, the visiting criminal is not counted in the town’s population, a factor used in calculating crime stats. Higher numbers mean more crime
41.4 For violent crime and 43.5 for property crime are the national averages. Tennessee does not do well in the crime category.
1. Signal Mountain 17.1
2. Germantown 22.1
3. Brentwood 23
4. Franklin 32.4
5. White House 33
HEALTH
HELP, I CAN’T BREATHE
I strongly recommend that if this category influences your move, you look up the air quality of where you live now because you know what that score feels like and it will help you to assess whether these numbers are much better or worse than what you are used to. You might be very surprised. The numbers are based on EPA pollutant data. Higher numbers are better. Lower numbers are worse.
The US average Air Quality score is 93.9.
Higher scores indicate better air quality.
Worst - If you have allergies or asthma, think twice about these places on the list of 40 towns:
Funny thing, people who are thinking about moving here are always asking about snow. What they should be asking about is rain (and potential flooding, driving on mountain roads in the rain, impact on traffic, etc.).
The US average rainfall is 36.5 inches per year.
Rain: Every Tennessee town on the list gets more than the US average. Of all of the towns on the list, Germantown averages the most – 56.9 inches per year. Greeneville gets the least 43 inches per year but still over the national average. All other towns on the list fall in between.
BUT, I SOLD MY SHOVEL AT A YARD SALE
The US average snowfall is 25 inches per year.
Snow: Of the towns on the list, Crossville averages the most snow, 14.2 inches per year and is still way below the national average. Memphis and Germantown average the least, 1.1 inches per year. Does it all fall at once, in Crossville? I don’t know.
HOTTER THAN A PEPPER SPROUT
The US average July high is 86.5 degrees.
Because Tennessee is a horizontal state, rather than a vertical one, I’m thinking there isn’t much temperature variation between the northern and southern parts of the state like there might be in some other states.
July average highs over 90 degrees are found in Jackson (91), Memphis (91), Germantown (91), Clarksville (91), Chattanooga (90), Nashville/Davidson (90), Brentwood (90), Franklin (90), Murfreesboro (90), Signal Mountain (90) and Smyrna (90). The coolest place in Tennessee in July is Crossville (84), followed by Bristol (86), Gatlinburg (86), Johnson City (86), and Townsend (86).
BUT, I’M FREEZING MY BUTT OFF
The US average January low is 20.5 degrees.
No Tennessee town has an average January low temperature lower than the national average. The lowest is Harriman (24.4), Kingston (24.4), Cookeville (24.8), LaFollette (25.1), Norris (25.1), Pigeon Forge (25.1) and Sevierville (25.1). The warmest in January is Winchester (31.3), Memphis (31.1), Germantown (31.1), Signal Mountain (31) and Chattanooga (31).
I realize these dollar numbers are changing rapidly, but where it is most cheap and most expensive (from the towns on the list) to buy a house, probably stay pretty much the same even when all prices go up.
US median home cost: $170,100 (down from $217,200 in 2007)
Most Expensive – Median Home Cost
1. Brentwood $501,800
2. Franklin $336,700
3. Signal Mountain $276,800
4. Germantown $268,000
5. Townsend $216,000
I don’t know how much that is spent on each K-12 student per year equates to the quality of their education. I’m pretty sure it equates to the property tax. I also don’t know if it’s cheaper to educate students in one town in one state over another town in another state because it’s cheaper to do everything else in that state. You know, wouldn’t you expect it to cost more to educate a kid in Washington, DC than Sevierville, TN just because everything costs more in Washington, DC? So, when you go OMIGOD, we spent two times those amounts on our kids in NYC, shouldn’t you also be thinking how much more expensive everything else was in NYC? Why should the cost of education be different? Please note: Unlike 2007 when you got expense per student from me, this dollar amount represents only the money spent directly on their education and not all of the other factors that figure into expense per student.
US National Average expense (education only) for each student per year - $10,495.
Which Tennessee school districts on the list of towns spend more than the US average on each student for their education?
None. Who spends the most? Nashville/Davidson ($9,800) Oak Ridge ($9,147), Norris ($9,147), Memphis ($9,026) and Germantown ($9,026).
Who spends the least? LaFollette ($6,854), Sparta ($6,946), Jefferson City ($6,981), Crossville ($7,046) and Morristown ($7,291).
COST OF LIVING
Note: I have no idea why groceries or utilities cost more in one Tennessee town compared to another.
Cost of Living - Groceries
Where does it cost more at the supermarket?
Most Expensive of Towns On The List- Groceries
With a score of 100 being the US average, there are no towns on the list off 40 where it costs more than the national average to buy groceries (does not include tax).
1. Cleveland 99.9
2. Signal Mountain 99
2. Chattanooga 99
4. Franklin 97.1
4. Brentwood 97.1
Least Expensive of Towns On The List – Groceries
With a score of 100 being the US average, it costs less than the national average to buy groceries in all other Tennessee towns on the list but these towns are the least expensive – grocery-wise.
Least Expensive of The Towns On The List – housing
With a score of 100 being the US average, it’s less than the national average for housing costs for all other Tennessee towns on the list. These places have the least expensive housing costs:
Just remember, on any of these factors, don’t get excited (up or down) until you take a look at the same categories for the town where you live now. DM me if you don’t know how to do that.
The percentage of people without even a GED is really troubling, as these people are basically unemployable and are a permanent underclass.
The crime has always bothered me in TN and it seems to have really escalated over the last few years or so. I am from Kingsport and there is a CVS right down the street in our neighborhood that was never robbed for many years. It's been robbed several times since 2013 by pillheads. They don't even want the money - only the drugs.
Also, the price of groceries here has made no sense to me. I was in MA for a month in March, and routine items like frozen chicken and veggies were just as much at Food City as they were at Shaws and Market Basket. It makes zero sense why something basic like food costs so much in such a poor area.
Do you think food costs more in poorer areas because it costs more to reach these towns, or prehaps because people are purchasing using SNAP, and therefore the stores feel they can charge more since the customers aren't using their own money....bothers me to know it would probably be the later. I've never understood, in Chattanooga, in one area of town, multiple gas stations, and gas prices stay low. Go a few miles to a poorer part of town , less stations, and they average about 10 cent more a galloon. The people in these areas should boycott the stations. I understand competetion and keeping prices lower, but for god sakes you want to make the poor pay more?
Do you think food costs more in poorer areas because it costs more to reach these towns, or prehaps because people are purchasing using SNAP, and therefore the stores feel they can charge more since the customers aren't using their own money....bothers me to know it would probably be the later. I've never understood, in Chattanooga, in one area of town, multiple gas stations, and gas prices stay low. Go a few miles to a poorer part of town , less stations, and they average about 10 cent more a galloon. The people in these areas should boycott the stations. I understand competetion and keeping prices lower, but for god sakes you want to make the poor pay more?
I think a lot of the problem is just due to a lack of competition, especially in small towns and poorer areas. Growing up in Kingsport, we had quite a few grocers - Kroger, Oakwood, Ingle's, Wal-Mart, Winn-Dixie, Food Lion, Food City, and White's.
White's was turned into Pricele$$ Foods. Winn-Dixie, Oakwood, and Food Lion are out of business. The Kroger is dumpy. Ingle's is on the very periphery of town and inconvenient for a lot of folks.
Since there is less competition, prices go up. Food City is particularly bad, as they are the only option in many small towns up here. Where I live in Indiana, there are more grocers.
I'd say the SNAP thing probably does have some truth too.
Do you think food costs more in poorer areas because it costs more to reach these towns, or prehaps because people are purchasing using SNAP, and therefore the stores feel they can charge more since the customers aren't using their own money....bothers me to know it would probably be the later. I've never understood, in Chattanooga, in one area of town, multiple gas stations, and gas prices stay low. Go a few miles to a poorer part of town , less stations, and they average about 10 cent more a galloon. The people in these areas should boycott the stations. I understand competetion and keeping prices lower, but for god sakes you want to make the poor pay more?
I was wondering if the delivery tractor trailers came from the East somewhere into TN since the cheapest groceries are towns in the eastern time zone. You know, maybe it has to do with the cost of diesel and how far they drive.
I was wondering if the delivery tractor trailers came from the East somewhere into TN since the cheapest groceries are towns in the eastern time zone. You know, maybe it has to do with the cost of diesel and how far they drive.
It does Laura. Transportation costs are always passed on to the consumer. Maybe not a great lot but it still does. A couple of questions Laura on transportation if you can. Which airport is a better resource to be closer too should that be needed. Also do you know what % of the budget of TN spends in road maintenance. This could be important to some first in terms of cost to individuals and in terms of how good the roads are. Every state is in constant struggle with road maintenance. Even more important those bridges that carry the roads over obsticals.
Anyway great posts Laura. I just saw your 2007 thread and replied there but you can ignore since this is your updated thread. So far your information is very good and I am excited at the prospect of life in TN.
Tracking Tennessee's 21.4-cent Gasoline Tax Fiscal Year 2013-2014
[LEFT]Tennessee’s gasoline tax [/LEFT]
21.4 cents per gallon (20 cent gasoline tax + 1.4 cent special petroleum fee)
Yields $654.6 million per year
Each penny is worth about $30.6 million per year
How the tax is divided
7.9 cents, or $242.2 million, goes to cities and counties
Approximately .7 cent, or $22 million, goes to the State General Fund
Approximately 12.8 cents, or $390.4 million, goes to TDOT
[LEFT]The $390.4 million is included in TDOT's total state revenue of $814,800,000 and is used in three basic ways to accomplish TDOT's mission: [/LEFT]
Basic operating costs
Highway maintenance contracts
Resurfacing, bridges, major reconstruction, new construction, consultant contracts, right-of-way purchases, and to match federal funds
[LEFT]The amount TDOT has for use is smaller each year due to TDOT operational and maintenance cost increases each year.
So based on what I see in the numbers here is that a little more then 50% of the gas tax collected goes into the TDOT for highway maintenance. Gas tax of 22 cents is lower then here in MA but not apprecialbly lower either.
I have not driven the roads there so I have nothing to compare with so the only thing I can ask is how are the roads across the state? With so many miles to maintain I am sure it is daunting to even consider. [/LEFT]
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
. 
