Survey Details: Conducted October 2008
File Release Date: 4 December 2009
Mobility
Most Like It Hot
By nearly two-to-one, the public says it prefers a hotter place to live over one with a colder climate. No surprise, then, that San Diego, Tampa and Orlando rank at the top of places to live for those who favor a balmy climate.
Magnet or Sticky?: A State-by-State Typology
“Magnet” states are those in which a high share of the adults who live there now moved there from some other state. “Sticky” states are those in which a high share of the adults who were born there live there now.
Suburbs Not Most Popular, But Suburbanites Most Content
Suburbanites are significantly more satisfied with their communities than are residents of cities, small towns or rural areas, but that doesn't mean Americans want to live there.
Even as Housing Values Sink, There’s Comfort in Homeownership
Not even a housing-led recession can shake Americans' faith in the blessings of homeownership.
McDonald’s and Starbucks: 43% Yin, 35% Yang
In the smackdown between Big Macs and caffe lattes, Americans manage to typecast themselves by just about every demographic and ideological characteristic under the sun.
For Nearly Half of America, Grass Is Greener Somewhere Else; Denver Tops List of Favorite Cities
Nearly half of the public would rather live in a different type of community from the one they're living in now -- a sentiment that is most prevalent among city dwellers.
Who Moves? Who Stays Put? Where’s Home?
Most Americans have moved to a new community at least once in their lives, although a notable number — nearly four-in-ten — have never left the place in which they were born.
Americans Say They Like Diverse Communities; Election, Census Trends Suggest Otherwise
Despite pro-diversity attitudes expressed in a Pew survey, American communities appear to have grown more politically and economically homogenous in recent decades.
Republicans: Still Happy Campers
Despite the imploding stock market, the looming recession, the unpopular president and the dismal political polls, there's very good news in the one realm of life that’s always been a special sanctuary for Republicans. Personal happiness.
