U.S. Census shows Orange County follows national averages

Data being released by the U.S. Census Bureau shows Orange County follows most national averages including median household income and computer access.

The county is ahead on the percentage of homeowners living in their houses. But the statistics show the median values of those dwellings are nearly 50 percent less than the national median, which may be interpreted to show housing is less expensive than in other areas.

The population numbers from the 2020 Census were released last year, but the Census Bureau in the past few weeks has been showing the details of data collected.

Orange County's 2020 population is 84,808, up about 3.6 percent from 81,837 in 2010. Texas stayed as one of the top growth states with a 15 percent increase and was third behind Utah and Montana.

Storms in Southeast Texas, including the 2016 Sabine River flood, plus tropical storms Harvey in 2017, and Imelda in 2019, have displaced people and may have affected population. The 2020 Census was taken earlier in 2020 before hurricanes Laura and Delta struck.

The census statistics show Orange County has a higher concentration of people identifying as "white only" than Texas and the country. The county is also above average in poverty levels, people without health insurance, and people without college bachelor's degrees or higher.

Data is also now listed for break-downs on the incorporated cities of Bridge City, Orange, and Vidor. Bridge City had the largest population increase from 2010 with 1,706 more people for 9,546, an increase of 21.7 percent. Orange went up to 19,324, an increase of 729 from the previous census of 18,595.

Vidor had a decrease in population of 808 for a total of 9,789 compared to 10,597 in 2010. The city had widespread flooding from Imelda in September 2019, seven months before the latest census.

Statistics from census questions show Orange County is average with the age spread of population. For people under age of 5, the county makeup is 6.7 percent compared with 6.9 percent for Texas and 6 percent for the U.S. For age under 18, Orange County has 24.8 percent, compared to 25.5 percent for Texas and 22.8 percent for the U.S. Residents 65 years and older have 16.5 percent of Orange County's population compared with 12.9 percent for Texas and 16.5 percent for the U.S.

The racial makeup of Orange County is 87.4 percent white alone, compared to 78.7 percent for Texas and 76.3 percent of the U.S. Black-African American alone have 8.8 percent of Orange's population compared to 12.9 percent of Texas and 13.4 percent of the U.S.

Orange County residents who are American Indian or Alaska Native make up 0.8 percent of Orange County with Texas having 1 percent of the population and 1.3 percent of the national population. People identifying as Asian alone make up 1.2 percent of Orange County compared to 5.2 percent in Texas and 5.9 percent in the U.S.

The Hispanic-Latino population in Orange County reached 8.5 percent in 2020 compared to 39.7 percent of Texas and 18.5 percent of the U.S. People registering as two or more races make up 1.7 percent of Orange County, 2.1 percent of Texas, and 2.8 percent of the U.S.

In education, Orange is above the state average in people graduating from high school with 88.4 percent compared to 84.4 percent in Texas. The U.S. has an 88.5 percent high school average. Orange has only 16 percent of its population of people with bachelor's college degrees or higher, with 30.7 percent of Texans having college degrees and 32.9 percent of people in the U.S. with degrees.

The census shows 91.4 percent of the households in Orange County have computers and 86.2 percent have broadband internet service. The state average of 92.7 percent with computers and 85.1 percent with broadband. Nationally, the statistics are 91.9 percent with computers and 85.2 percent with broadband.

Orange County has 31,570 households with an average of 2.63 per household. The county population has 74.3 percent of people living in owner-occupied housing with a 62.3 percent state average and a 64.4 percent U.S. average.

The median value of an owner-occupied dwelling is $116,100 for Orange County, Compared to $187,200 for Texas and $229,800 for the U.S. The Orange County mean travel time for a person to get to work is 24 minutes, compared to 26.6 minutes in Texas and 26.7 minutes nationally.

The county has 15.1 percent of its population living in poverty. In Texas, 13.4 percent of the population lives in poverty with 11.4 percent of the U.S. population in poverty.

In Orange County people under age 65 with disabilities account for 10.9 percent of the population compared to 7.9 percent in Texas and 8.7 percent in Texas. The county has 16.8 percent of it population under age 65 without health insurance, with Texas at 20.8 percent without health insurance and the U.S. at 10.2 percent without health insurance.

For the city of Bridge City, the racial makeup is 93.8 percent white alone with 5.8 percent Hispanic or Latin, 2.1 percent Asian, and 3.5 percent identifying as two or more races. The city has a zero percent of blacks and a zero percent of Native Americans.

In Bridge City, 74.5 percent of the housing is owner occupied with the median home price of $148,900. The city has 2,798 households with 91 percent having computers and 88.2 percent with broadband service.

Median household income in the city is $87,031 and the per capita income is $37,341. Bridge City has a 6.4 percent poverty rate.

Bridge City's population has 91.8 percent with high school diplomas, plus 26.7 percent with bachelor's degrees or higher. Health wise, the city has a 4.9 percent of people under 65 with disabilities and 12.8 percent under 65 without health insurance.

The city of Orange has 59.4 percent or the population marking white alone, 33.4 percent as black, and 7.3 percent as Hispanic or Latino. American Indians make up 0.2 percent of the city's population and people identifying as Asian alone are 2.9 percent. The city has 3.2 percent identifying a two or more races.

Orange has 7,196 households with 60.1 percent of people living in owner-occupied housing. The median owner-occupied house is $101,800. Of the dwellings, 88.4 percent have computers and 82.9 percent have broadband service.

The median household income is $55,866 and the per capita income is $27,960. Orange has a poverty level of 18 percent.

For education, 89.8 percent of people in Orange have graduated high school and 16.8 percent have bachelor's degrees or higher. The city has 13.6 percent of people under 65 with disabilities and 22.3 percent of people under age 65 with no health insurance.

The city of Vidor has a 98.4 percent of the population as white along with 0.1 percent black. The city has 8.3 percent identifying as Hispanic-Latino and 1.4 percent marking two or more races. The city had zero percentages in people with Asian alone or American Indian backgrounds.

Vidor has 68.7 percent of its population in owner-occupied homes with the median dwelling set at $84,300. The city has 4,129 households with 94.8 percent having computers and 90.6 percent with broadband.

The median household income is $50,182 and the per capita income is $24,629. Vidor has 13.9 percent of its population living in poverty.

The city has 84 percent of the population graduating from high school and 6.9 percent with bachelor's degrees or higher. Under health categories, the city has 12.5 percent of residents under 65 with disabilities and 24.4 percent without health insurance.