Part 2: How Much is Too Much? Comparing Income Inequality and the Cost of Living in Hampton Roads to New York City

Incomes are distributed more equally in Hampton Roads than nationally and certainly more so than in New York City. At least 80 percent of households in Hampton Roads are better off in economic terms than the comparable 80 percent in New York City

Part 5: Affordable Housing in Hampton Roads: Facts and Issues

The rapid increase in regional housing prices in recent years (97 percent between 1997 and 2006) has made it much more difficult for some people to own their own home. Between these years, the annual interest and principal payments required for a typical home purchase rose from only 21.5 percent of the median income of our region’s households to 32 percent. Economically viable solutions to affordable housing challenges nearly always include increased housing density in order to make more moderately priced housing profitable to builders

Part 1: The Regional Economy Downshifts

The spectacular first half of this decade is fading into the background as our regional economic growth rate has fallen back to the Commonwealth and national averages. Defense spending continues to rise in importance and now is responsible for more than 40 percent of our regional income generation

Part 1: Hampton Roads… A Comparative Tour

We compare Hampton Roads to other metropolitan areas by means of more than 30 different economic, social, and educational variables. This section should be a valuable referenc

Part 5: Does the Commonwealth Balance It\u27s Budget on the Backs of Local Governments?

We examine the Commonwealth’s fiscal practices and conclude that the answer to this question often is yes

Part 10: The State of Health

As a region, Hampton Roads has worked hard to increase the number and quality of its medical facilities. The merger of Sentara and Tidewater Health Care sealed Sentara\u27s position as the region\u27s largest health care provider and forced it to rise to the challenge of offering excellent, efficient medical care. It has proven itself by attaining a ranking of 6th among all of the health networks in the nation, its third consecutive year in the top 10. Only two other health care systems have been named to the top 10 list for this many years. In addition, Sentara Norfolk General Hospital was the only medical facility in southeastern Virginia or northeastern North Carolina to earn a spot in the U.S. News & World Report rankings of America\u27s best hospitals. It was particularly noted for its excellence in cardiology and rheumatology. In addition to Sentara, Hampton Roads is home to 13 not-for-profit hospitals. Specializing in everything from oncology and orthopedics to pediatrics and sports medicine, they offer residents expert care in all areas of medicine, at all hours of the day

Part 5: Public Social Services In Hampton Roads: A Primer

Last year, governments spent nearly $600 million to provide social services within Hampton Roads. These services are part of the social safety net of which many regional citizens are ignorant. We detail the programs and their challenges

Part 2: Is There a Housing Price Bubble in Hampton Roads?

While housing prices increased 40 percent in Hampton Roads (after inflation) during the past decade, most of this increase can be attributed to improved eco-nomic fundamentals such as lower interest rates, increased incomes, Department of Defense housing incentives and more cautious building policies by area developers. Hence, we do not have the kind of housing price bubble that currently exists in cities such as San Diego, San Francisco and Boston, and the state of Florida. We may face some future price adjustments, but they are not likely to be wrenching

Part 8: The Chrysler Museum in 2009

The Chrysler Museum of Art is one of the foremost cultural jewels of our region, but now faces challenges that stem both from significant economic constraints and internal reorganizations

Part 3: Sizing Up the Competition: Hampton Roads Versus Other East Coast Container Ports

Over the past decade, the Port of Virginia has slipped to third place on the East Coast behind Savannah, Ga. Perhaps we can reverse this by means of Norfolk Southern Corp.’s Heartland Corridor and the recent lease acquisition of the APM Maersk facility in Portsmouth