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Altoona, KS

Last updated
Key Indicators
A quick look at key numbers

Population

467
Source: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates

Median Age

41.4
years ∙ half population younger than 41.4, half older

Diversity Index

Low High
23.9%
chance two random people differ in race and ethnicity

Nativity

5.1%
foreign-born population
94.9%Native
5.1% Foreign-born

Geographic Context

Location, size, and surroundings

About

Altoona is a city within Wilson County, Kansas, United States.
Location
City in Wilson County, KS, US
Co-ordinates
DEC37.524517° N, 95.661498° W
DMS37° 31′ 28.26″ N, 95° 39′ 41.39″ W

Population Density & area

874.5/sq mi (337.9/km²)
Total Area
0.537 sq mi (1.389 km²)
Land Area
0.534 sq mi (1.382 km²) · 99.52%
Water Area
0.003 sq mi (0.007 km²) · 0.48%

Demographics & Living

Who lives here, how households are formed, and community composition

Population Composition

Key characteristics of the population

Sex Distribution

42.6% male
Male 42.6%
Female 57.4%
males per 100 females
Altoona 74.3
Wilson County 102.3
Kansas 100.7

Nativity

5.1%
foreign-born population
94.9%Native
5.1% Foreign-born
% Foreign-born
Altoona 5.1%
Wilson County 1.8%
Kansas 7.4%
Age Distribution
How the population is spread across age groups

Median Age

41.4
years ∙ half population younger than 41.4, half older
Altoona
41.4
Wilson County
42.7
Kansas
37.4

Dependency ratio

Low High
93.8
dependents per 100 working-age adults
Altoona 93.8
Wilson County 88.6
Kansas 68.7

AGE DISTRIBUTION

Distribution of age group
Median age
Altoona Wilson County Kansas
Age Group
Children (Under 18) 26.1% 23.9% 23.8%
Working age (18-64) 51.6% 53% 59.2%
Senior (65+) 22.3% 23.1% 17%
Dependency ratio
Total dependency ratio 93.8 88.6 68.7
Child dependency ratio 50.6 45.1 40.1
Old-age dependency ratio 43.2 43.6 28.6
Racial & Ethnic Composition
Racial and ethnic makeup and how it compares

Race & Ethnicity

White
86.5%
Black
0%
Asian
0%
Hispanic
2.6%
Other
10.9%
Note: White, Black, and Asian refer to individuals belonging to a single race and not of Hispanic origin. Hispanics may be of any race.

Diversity Index

Low High
23.9%
chance two random people differ in race and ethnicity
Altoona 23.9%
Wilson County 17.9%
Kansas 44.7%
Note: The Diversity Index (DI), based on the Blau Index, measures the probability that two randomly selected individuals differ in race and ethnicity. Values range from 0 (no diversity) to 1 (high diversity) and are shown as percentages.

RACIAL & ETHNIC COMPOSITION

Race & Ethnicity
Percentage of Altoona population
Racial and ethnic composition — Altoona vs Wilson County vs Kansas. Source: ACS 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates.
Altoona Wilson County Kansas
Hispanic or Latino 2.6% 3.8% 13.6%
Mexican 2.6% 3.2% 10.4%
Puerto Rican 0% 0.2% 0.6%
Cuban 0% 0% 0.2%
Other Hispanic / Latino 0% 0.5% 2.3%
Not Hispanic or Latino 97.4% 96.2% 86.4%
One race 86.5% 91.5% 81.6%
White 86.5% 90.4% 72.7%
Black or African American 0% 0.2% 5.2%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0% 0.8% 0.4%
Asian 0% 0% 2.9%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 0% 0% 0.1%
Some Other Race 0% 0.2% 0.4%
Two or more races (Multiracial) 10.9% 4.7% 4.8%
Household & Families Composition
Household size, type, and family structure

Household structure

62.8% family
Family 62.8%
Non family 37.2%
% family households
Altoona 62.8%
Wilson County 68.5%
Kansas 63.4%

Average household size

2.26
persons per household
Altoona
2.26
Wilson County
2.37
Kansas
2.44

Household & Family COMPOSITION

Households
Percentage of Altoona population
Altoona Wilson County Kansas
Total households 207 3,517 1,174,060
Average houshold size 2.26 2.37 2.44
Family households 130 2,410 744,502
Average family size 2.96 2.77 3.05
Married couple family 105 1,750 576,382
Other families 25 660 168,120
Male householder 7 295 52,856
Female householder 18 365 115,264
Non-family households 77 1,107 429,558
One-person households 76 1,023 352,785
Male householder 22 478 167,881
Senior (65+) living alone 7 166 49,284
Female householder 54 545 184,904
Senior (65+) living alone 36 408 95,985
Other living arrangements 1 84 76,773

Housing Profile

Housing stock, ownership, rentals, and cost burdens

Total housing units

259
housing units
Altoona 259
Wilson County 4,493
Kansas 1,293,635

Occupancy status

79.9% occupied
Occupied 79.9%
Vacant 20.1%
vacancy rate
Altoona 20.1%
Wilson County 21.7%
Kansas 9.2%
Housing Characteristics
How the housing supply is structured and used

Types of Housing unit

73%
Single family houses
Single family houses
73%
Apartments in multi-unit structures
0%
Mobile homes
27%
Boat, RV, van, etc
0%

Median Year Built

1973
Half of houses were built before 1973, and half after.
Historic ∙ 1939 or earlier
34%
Postwar & mid-century ∙ 1940 - 1969
13.1%
Late 20th century ∙ 1970 - 1999
46.7%
Modern ∙ 2000 or later
6.2%
Note: Median year built reflects occupied units only; distribution includes all units.

Housing Characteristics

Units, rooms & bedrooms
Physical characteristics of housing units
Altoona Wilson County Kansas
Rooms per unit
Median rooms 5.7 6 6
1–3 rooms 5.4% 7.9% 11.9%
4–6 rooms 68% 54.5% 46.3%
7+ rooms 26.7% 37.6% 41.7%
Bedrooms
No bedroom / studio 0% 1% 2.5%
1 bedroom 1.9% 6.4% 9.4%
2 bedrooms 40.5% 27.4% 24.9%
3 bedrooms 43.2% 46.2% 35.7%
4+ bedrooms 14.3% 18.9% 27.5%
At a glance
Median year built 1973 1966 1977
Total housing units 259 4,493 1,293,635
Occupancy Profile
Who is inside and how they use it

Homeownership

86.5% owners
Renter-occupied 13.5%
Owner-occupied 86.5%
homeownership rate
Altoona 86.5%
Wilson County 77.7%
Kansas 67.2%

Average household size

2.32
Owner-occupied
1.82
Renter-occupied
owner-occupied average size
Altoona 2.32
Wilson County 2.4
Kansas 2.59

Housing Characteristics

Occupied unit characteristics
Tenure, crowding, and utilities
Altoona Wilson County Kansas
Total occupied units 207 3,517 1,174,060
Year moved in
2020 or later 21.2% 20% 26.8%
2010 to 2019 38.2% 37.6% 38.4%
2000 to 2009 20.8% 22.1% 16.3%
1999 or earlier 19.8% 20.3% 18.6%
Occupants per room
1.00 or fewer 100% 98.5% 97.9%
1.01 to 1.50 0% 0.7% 1.4%
1.51 or more 0% 0.8% 0.7%
Vehicles availability
No vehicles 6.8% 5.6% 5.1%
1 vehicle 20.3% 23.4% 30%
2 vehicles 48.8% 34.5% 38.2%
3 or more vehicles 24.2% 36.5% 26.7%
House heating fuel used
Gas 68.6% 73.5% 70.9%
Electricity 26.1% 20.9% 26.9%
Solar 0% 0% 0.1%
Fuel oil, kerosene etc 0% 0.7% 0.2%
All other fuels 5.3% 4.5% 1.7%
No fuel used 0% 0.4% 0.3%
Selected characteristics
Lacking complete plumbing 8.2% 0.9% 0.4%
Lacking complete kitchen 5.3% 1.6% 0.9%
No telephone service available 2.4% 1.7% 0.8%
Housing Value
What owner-occupied units are worth

Median home value

$48,000
owner-occupied units
Median value(USD)
Altoona
$48,000
Wilson County
$93,500
Kansas
$217,200

Housing Cost Burden

8.7%
of homeowners with a mortgage are cost-burdened
% Cost-Burdened Households
Owners with a mortgage
8.7%
Owners without a mortgage
9.1%
Renters
45.4%
Note: Households spending 30% or more of their income on housing costs are considered cost-burdened.

Financial characteristics

Property value and housing costs
Tenure, crowding, and utilities
Altoona Wilson County Kansas
Property value
Median Value $48,000 $93,500 $217,200
Under $100,000 85.5% 54.6% 20.9%
$100,000 - $200,000 14.5% 22.6% 24.9%
$200,000 - $300,000 0% 14.7% 21%
$300,000 - $500,000 0% 5.7% 22.4%
$500,000 - $1,000,000 0% 2.1% 9.3%
$1,000,000 and more 0% 0.3% 1.5%
Owner-occupied households
With a mortgage 25.7% 45.3% 57.4%
Without a mortgage 74.3% 54.7% 42.6%
Median monthly owner costs
With a mortgage $850 $1,203 $1,689
Without a mortgage $440 $529 $641
Gross rent
Median rent $664 $736 $1,060

Education Profile

How educated is the community and how education pays off

Adults with a college degree

10.5%
of adults 25+ with a bachelor's degree or higher
Altoona 10.5%
Wilson County 19.9%
Kansas 35.6%

Adults without a high school diploma

8.5%
of adults (25+) without a high school diploma
Altoona 8.5%
Wilson County 9.7%
Kansas 8.1%
School Enrollment
Who is enrolled in school and at what level

School enrollment

94
population (age 3+) enrolled in school
Nursery / Preschool
5.3%
K–12
94.7%
College / Undergraduate
0%
Graduate / Professional
0%

College-going rate (18-24 yr olds)

0%
of 18-24-year-olds in college or graduate school
Altoona
0%
Wilson County
6.3%
Kansas
39.9%

Enrollment & school type

Enrollment levels, college-going rate, and public vs private school split
Population 3+ currently enrolled in a school
Altoona Wilson County Kansas
Total enrolled (age 3+) 94 1,771 753,280
Nursery / preschool 5.3% 10% 6%
K–12 94.7% 81.2% 68.1%
Kindergarten 8.5% 5.8% 4.8%
Elementary: Grades 1–4 25.5% 24.7% 20.1%
Elementary: Grades 5–8 24.5% 21.1% 21.7%
High School: Grades 9–12 36.2% 29.7% 21.6%
College or graduate school 0% 8.8% 25.8%
College, undergraduate 0% 4.3% 20.1%
Graduate, professional school 0% 4.5% 5.7%
College-going rate · 18-24 yr olds 0% 6.3% 39.9%
School type
Public school 87.2% 82.3% 85.2%
Private school 12.8% 17.7% 14.8%
Education Attainment by Level & Gender
What is the highest level of education completed among adults

Education attainment

294
population 25 years and over
Total adults (25+)
Less than 9th grade
2%
9th-12th, no diploma
6.5%
HS graduate
36.4%
Some college no degree
35.4%
Associates degree
9.2%
Bachelors degree
10.2%
Graduate or professional degree
0.3%

Attainment by gender

Male vs Female
Adults (25+) · Share within each education level
% male · % female
Less than 9th grade
83.3% · 16.7%
9th-12th, no diploma
57.9% · 42.1%
HS graduate
59.8% · 40.2%
Some college no degree
43.3% · 56.7%
Associates degree
3.7% · 96.3%
Bachelors degree
30% · 70%
Graduate or professional degree
0% · 100%

Educational Attainment Overview

Distribution and key education attainment rates for adults (25+)
Highest credential completed · adults 25+
Altoona Wilson County Kansas
Population (25+) 294 5,921 1,946,678
Less than 9th grade 2% 4.7% 3.5%
9th–12th, no diploma 6.5% 5% 4.6%
High school diploma or GED 36.4% 36.9% 25.4%
Some college, no degree 35.4% 23.3% 21.8%
Associate's degree 9.2% 10.1% 9.1%
Bachelor's degree or higher 10.5% 19.9% 35.6%
Bachelor's degree 10.2% 15.3% 22.2%
Graduate or professional 0.3% 4.6% 13.4%
High School or higher 91.5% 90.3% 92%
Earnings by education level
percentage as applicable

Median Earnings

$45,833
Median earnings for adults 25+, by level
Less than HS graduate
$48,500
HS graduate
$46,563
Some college or associates
$40,500
Bachelors degree
$54,583
Graduate or professional degree
$—

Poverty Rate

0%
for ages 25+, with bachelors degree or higher
Less than HS graduate
16%
HS graduate
5.6%
Some college or associates
3.8%
Bachelors degree or higher
0%

Outcomes by Education Level

Earnings and poverty rates across education levels (25+)
Adults 25+
Altoona Wilson County Kansas
Median earnings
Population 25+, with earnings $45,833 $45,202 $50,504
Less than high school graduate $48,500 $43,086 $35,231
High school graduate (includes equivalency) $46,563 $41,250 $39,282
Some college or associate's degree $40,500 $40,208 $45,261
Bachelor's degree $54,583 $53,462 $63,396
Graduate or professional degree $— $62,583 $75,635
Poverty rates
Less than high school graduate 16% 28.9% 22.7%
High school graduate (includes equivalency) 5.6% 19.7% 12.9%
Some college or associate's degree 3.8% 15.8% 8.5%
Bachelor's degree or higher 0% 4.3% 3.8%

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