Table 58. Size of consumer unit: Shares of annual aggregate expenditures and sources of income, Consumer Expenditure

Survey, 2008

(Aggregates in millions of dollars, unless otherwise indicated)

Item Aggregate One

person

Two or more persons

Total Two

persons

Three

persons

Four

persons

Five or

more

persons

Number of consumer units (in thousands) ................... 120,770 35,064 85,706 39,629 17,982 16,514 11,580 

Percent distribution of consumer units ........................ 100.0 29.0 71.0 32.8 14.9 13.7 9.6 

Consumer unit characteristics (mean values):

Income before taxes ................................................. $63,563 $32,994 $76,068 $68,168 $77,032 $87,390 $85,464 

Income after taxes .................................................... 61,774 31,789 74,041 65,755 74,618 85,501 85,156 

Age of reference person ............................................ 49.1 52.6 47.6 53.9 44.0 41.1 41.5 

Average number in consumer unit:

Persons ................................................................... 2.5 1.0 3.1 2.0 3.0 4.0 5.6 

Children under 18 .................................................... .6 n.a. .9 .1 .8 1.6 2.7 

Persons 65 and older .............................................. .3 .3 .3 .5 .2 .1 .1 

Earners .................................................................... 1.3 .6 1.6 1.2 1.7 1.9 2.2 

Vehicles ................................................................... 2.0 1.1 2.3 2.2 2.3 2.5 2.5 

Percent distribution:

Sex of reference person:

Male ......................................................................... 47 47 47 51 43 44 42 

Female ..................................................................... 53 53 53 49 57 56 58 

Housing tenure:

Homeowner ............................................................. 66 49 74 75 69 75 72 

With mortgage ....................................................... 42 24 50 42 51 63 58 

Without mortgage .................................................. 24 25 24 34 18 12 14 

Renter ...................................................................... 34 51 26 25 31 25 28 

Race of reference person:

Black or African-American ....................................... 12 13 12 10 14 12 14 

White, Asian, and all other races ............................. 88 87 88 90 86 88 86 

Hispanic or Latino origin of reference person:

Hispanic or Latino .................................................... 12 7 13 8 15 17 25 

Not Hispanic or Latino ............................................. 88 93 87 92 85 83 75 

Education of reference person:

Elementary (1-8) ...................................................... 5 5 5 4 3 4 8 

High school (9-12) ................................................... 35 34 35 34 38 33 39 

College .................................................................... 60 60 60 61 59 63 53 

Never attended and other ........................................ 1 ( ) 1 ( ) 1 ( ) 1 ( ) 1 ( ) 1 ( ) 1 ( )

At least one vehicle owned or leased ........................ 89 77 94 93 92 95 95 

Annual aggregate expenditures ................................... $6,094,697 17.3 82.7 34.7 17.6 17.6 12.8 

Food .......................................................................... 776,825 16.1 83.9 32.3 17.9 18.3 15.4 

Food at home .......................................................... 451,454 15.1 84.9 32.1 18.3 18.0 16.4 

Cereals and bakery products ................................. 61,119 14.8 85.2 31.1 17.9 19.0 17.1 

Cereals and cereal products ................................ 20,448 13.6 86.4 30.2 18.6 18.8 18.7 

Bakery products ................................................... 40,671 15.4 84.6 31.6 17.6 19.1 16.3 

Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs ................................ 102,033 14.3 85.7 32.2 18.7 17.4 17.4 

Beef ..................................................................... 28,799 13.2 86.8 31.9 19.5 16.9 18.4 

Pork ..................................................................... 19,649 13.6 86.4 33.0 18.2 18.1 17.1 

Other meats ......................................................... 12,837 14.1 85.9 33.4 17.3 18.4 16.7 

Poultry ................................................................. 19,175 14.0 86.0 31.2 19.9 17.4 17.5 

Fish and seafood ................................................. 15,417 16.8 83.2 32.2 17.7 16.8 16.5 

Eggs .................................................................... 6,156 16.3 83.7 30.7 18.4 16.9 17.6 

Dairy products ....................................................... 51,786 15.7 84.3 31.7 18.0 18.5 16.2 

Fresh milk and cream .......................................... 20,269 15.6 84.4 29.5 18.1 19.2 17.6 

Other dairy products ............................................ 31,518 15.7 84.3 33.2 17.9 18.0 15.3 

See footnotes at end of table.
Table 58. Size of consumer unit: Shares of annual aggregate expenditures and sources of income, Consumer Expenditure

Survey, 2008 — Continued

(Aggregates in millions of dollars, unless otherwise indicated)

Item Aggregate One

person

Two or more persons

Total Two

persons

Three

persons

Four

persons

Five or

more

persons

Fruits and vegetables ............................................ $79,194 15.9 84.1 33.0 18.3 17.2 15.6 

Fresh fruits ........................................................... 26,756 15.7 84.3 33.0 18.7 17.2 15.4 

Fresh vegetables ................................................. 25,542 16.0 84.0 35.3 17.4 16.4 14.9 

Processed fruits ................................................... 14,032 17.0 83.0 30.2 18.3 18.2 16.3 

Processed vegetables ......................................... 12,864 15.1 84.9 31.7 19.1 17.5 16.6 

Other food at home ................................................ 157,321 15.2 84.8 32.1 18.3 18.3 16.1 

Sugar and other sweets ....................................... 15,580 15.2 84.8 33.7 17.2 17.3 16.5 

Fats and oils ........................................................ 12,595 15.6 84.4 33.2 18.2 17.0 16.1 

Miscellaneous foods ............................................ 81,963 15.4 84.6 31.1 18.4 18.8 16.4 

Nonalcoholic beverages ...................................... 41,289 15.0 85.0 31.6 18.7 18.5 16.1 

Food prepared by consumer unit on out-of-town

trips .................................................................... 5,894 14.7 85.3 42.7 16.6 15.3 10.7 

Food away from home ............................................. 325,371 17.5 82.5 32.5 17.3 18.7 14.0 

Alcoholic beverages .................................................. 53,558 24.2 75.8 39.3 15.0 12.4 9.2 

Housing ..................................................................... 2,065,912 19.5 80.5 33.3 17.1 17.7 12.4 

Shelter ..................................................................... 1,229,818 21.4 78.6 32.7 16.5 17.6 11.8 

Owned dwellings ................................................... 816,456 15.8 84.2 33.6 17.2 20.3 13.0 

Mortgage interest and charges ............................ 462,120 13.7 86.3 29.6 18.3 23.4 15.0 

Property taxes ..................................................... 212,347 16.9 83.1 37.3 16.3 17.8 11.6 

Maintenance, repairs, insurance, other expenses 141,988 21.0 79.0 41.2 15.2 13.9 8.7 

Rented dwellings ................................................... 329,033 37.1 62.9 26.5 14.5 12.0 9.9 

Other lodging ......................................................... 84,330 14.4 85.6 47.4 17.0 13.8 7.5 

Utilities, fuels, and public services ........................... 440,720 18.0 82.0 34.2 17.2 17.4 13.3 

Natural gas ............................................................ 64,158 18.6 81.4 34.6 15.9 17.3 13.7 

Electricity ............................................................... 163,444 17.9 82.1 33.8 17.4 17.5 13.4 

Fuel oil and other fuels .......................................... 23,163 19.8 80.2 44.5 14.0 12.9 8.9 

Telephone services ............................................... 136,089 18.1 81.9 32.6 18.3 17.8 13.3 

Water and other public services ............................ 53,865 16.9 83.1 34.3 16.8 17.9 14.1 

Household operations .............................................. 120,468 14.9 85.1 29.1 19.3 22.8 13.9 

Personal services .................................................. 46,280 5.6 94.4 15.1 25.0 34.1 20.1 

Other household expenses .................................... 74,189 20.7 79.3 37.8 15.7 15.8 10.0 

Housekeeping supplies ........................................... 78,880 15.2 84.8 35.0 18.0 17.8 14.0 

Laundry and cleaning supplies .............................. 17,821 15.0 85.0 31.5 18.7 17.1 17.7 

Other household products ..................................... 42,224 12.8 87.2 34.3 17.8 19.7 15.4 

Postage and stationery .......................................... 18,834 20.9 79.1 40.1 17.7 14.0 7.4 

Household furnishings and equipment .................... 196,026 15.5 84.5 36.8 19.5 15.7 12.4 

Household textiles ................................................. 15,234 13.6 86.4 41.9 18.0 17.4 9.2 

Furniture ................................................................ 46,812 15.7 84.3 33.8 20.9 16.5 13.1 

Floor coverings ...................................................... 5,383 11.0 89.0 44.7 22.4 16.1 5.9 

Major appliances ................................................... 24,651 13.2 86.8 36.8 19.0 18.1 12.9 

Small appliances, miscellaneous housewares ...... 13,616 19.8 80.2 40.1 15.6 14.2 10.4 

Miscellaneous household equipment .................... 90,330 16.0 84.0 36.6 19.6 14.5 13.2 

Apparel and services ................................................. 217,176 14.7 85.3 31.4 20.0 18.0 15.9 

Men and boys .......................................................... 51,483 13.4 86.6 30.2 20.5 18.5 17.4 

Men, 16 and over ................................................... 41,502 15.7 84.3 34.3 21.0 14.9 14.1 

Boys, 2 to 15 .......................................................... 9,981 3.7 96.3 13.2 18.6 33.7 30.8 

Women and girls ...................................................... 86,595 15.4 84.6 33.1 19.4 16.4 15.8 

Women, 16 and over ............................................. 71,960 17.6 82.4 36.7 19.7 14.2 11.8 

Girls, 2 to 15 .......................................................... 14,635 4.4 95.6 15.6 17.9 26.9 35.1 

Children under 2 ...................................................... 11,185 5.1 94.9 16.0 29.9 25.3 23.7 

Footwear .................................................................. 37,909 14.5 85.5 29.8 20.0 19.5 16.2 

Other apparel products and services ....................... 30,004 19.2 80.8 36.4 16.9 17.0 10.4 

See footnotes at end of table.
Table 58. Size of consumer unit: Shares of annual aggregate expenditures and sources of income, Consumer Expenditure

Survey, 2008 — Continued

(Aggregates in millions of dollars, unless otherwise indicated)

Item Aggregate One

person

Two or more persons

Total Two

persons

Three

persons

Four

persons

Five or

more

persons

Transportation ........................................................... $1,038,811 14.9 85.1 35.2 18.7 18.1 13.0 

Vehicle purchases (net outlay) ................................ 332,698 12.8 87.2 35.6 20.8 17.6 13.2 

Cars and trucks, new ............................................. 157,600 12.3 87.7 40.1 20.2 17.0 10.4 

Cars and trucks, used ............................................ 158,872 13.3 86.7 31.6 20.7 18.2 16.1 

Other vehicles ........................................................ 16,225 12.8 87.2 30.9 27.4 16.4 12.5 

Gasoline and motor oil ............................................. 327,872 14.8 85.2 33.7 18.0 19.2 14.3 

Other vehicle expenses ........................................... 316,280 16.8 83.2 35.6 17.6 18.3 11.8 

Vehicle finance charges ........................................ 37,717 11.3 88.7 33.0 19.2 21.4 15.1 

Maintenance and repairs ....................................... 88,214 17.6 82.4 36.1 16.7 17.6 12.0 

Vehicle insurance .................................................. 134,230 18.0 82.0 35.8 17.6 17.6 10.9 

Vehicle rental, leases, licenses, and other

charges ................................................................ 56,120 16.2 83.8 35.9 17.7 18.6 11.5 

Public transportation ................................................ 61,961 17.8 82.2 39.7 16.5 15.0 11.1 

Healthcare ................................................................. 359,365 17.7 82.3 43.8 14.7 13.9 9.8 

Health insurance ...................................................... 199,678 18.8 81.2 43.7 14.5 14.1 8.9 

Medical services ...................................................... 87,755 15.5 84.5 42.3 14.7 15.0 12.5 

Drugs ....................................................................... 58,197 17.8 82.2 47.0 15.0 11.5 8.8 

Medical supplies ...................................................... 13,734 16.9 83.1 40.8 17.2 15.1 10.0 

Entertainment ............................................................ 342,185 16.9 83.1 36.9 16.2 17.6 12.4 

Fees and admissions ............................................... 74,337 15.2 84.8 31.8 17.5 20.7 14.9 

Audio and visual equipment and services ............... 125,111 19.4 80.6 35.6 17.4 16.7 11.0 

Pets, toys, hobbies, and playground equipment ...... 84,872 17.5 82.5 42.0 13.9 16.3 10.4 

Other entertainment supplies, equipment, and

services ................................................................. 57,865 12.8 87.2 39.0 15.5 17.2 15.5 

Personal care products and services ........................ 74,300 18.2 81.8 34.2 17.9 17.2 12.5 

Reading ..................................................................... 14,030 21.9 78.1 40.6 15.7 13.6 8.1 

Education ................................................................... 126,275 16.7 83.3 27.2 20.0 21.2 14.9 

Tobacco products and smoking supplies .................. 38,244 19.7 80.3 33.8 19.8 15.1 11.7 

Miscellaneous ............................................................ 101,374 19.3 80.7 37.4 17.9 15.3 10.2 

Cash contributions ..................................................... 209,721 22.0 78.0 39.3 16.1 12.6 10.1 

Personal insurance and pensions ............................. 676,923 13.6 86.4 35.7 18.8 19.2 12.7 

Life and other personal insurance ........................... 38,264 9.9 90.1 43.6 18.7 16.4 11.4 

Pensions and Social Security .................................. 638,659 13.8 86.2 35.2 18.8 19.4 12.8 

Sources of income and personal taxes:

Money income before taxes ...................................... 7,676,460 15.1 84.9 35.2 18.0 18.8 12.9 

Wages and salaries ................................................. 6,160,177 13.0 87.0 32.2 19.3 21.1 14.3 

Self-employment income ......................................... 388,778 13.0 87.0 36.0 17.7 17.9 15.5 

Social Security, private and government retirement 794,300 27.6 72.4 56.3 9.4 4.1 2.6 

Interest, dividends, rental income, other property

income ................................................................... 182,259 25.8 74.2 50.1 11.9 9.1 3.1 

Unemployment and workers’ compensation,

veterans’ benefits .................................................. 27,198 19.1 80.9 35.3 22.2 11.4 12.0 

Public assistance, supplemental security income,

food stamps ........................................................... 44,800 22.3 77.7 22.6 18.0 15.1 22.0 

Regular contributions for support ............................ 53,864 27.4 72.6 20.3 21.8 20.9 9.6 

Other income ........................................................... 25,084 36.6 63.4 26.4 15.2 10.3 11.5 

See footnotes at end of table.
Table 58. Size of consumer unit: Shares of annual aggregate expenditures and sources of income, Consumer Expenditure

Survey, 2008 — Continued

(Aggregates in millions of dollars, unless otherwise indicated)

Item Aggregate One

person

Two or more persons

Total Two

persons

Three

persons

Four

persons

Five or

more

persons

Personal taxes ........................................................... $216,057 19.6 80.4 44.3 20.1 14.4 1.7 

Federal income taxes .............................................. 219,443 18.3 81.7 41.8 19.6 15.5 4.8 

2008 Tax stimulus (new UCC Q20082) ................... -94,645 13.5 86.5 32.4 17.9 20.0 16.3 

State and local income taxes ................................... 65,485 15.4 84.6 36.8 19.4 19.2 9.2 

Other taxes .............................................................. 25,774 18.3 81.7 40.9 17.9 13.7 9.3 

Income after taxes ..................................................... 7,460,402 14.9 85.1 34.9 18.0 18.9 13.2 

1 Value less than or equal to 0.5.