Table 60. Number of earners in 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

Single consumers Consumer units of two or more persons

No earner One earner No earner One earner Two earners

Three or

more

earners

Number of consumer units (in thousands) ............... 120,770 13,365 21,699 10,762 25,011 40,395 9,540 

Percent distribution of consumer units ..................... 100.0 11.1 18.0 8.9 20.7 33.4 7.9 

Consumer unit characteristics (mean values):

Income before taxes ............................................. $63,563 $17,682 $42,426 $31,513 $58,601 $92,124 $104,141 

Income after taxes ................................................ 61,774 17,720 40,455 31,711 57,562 89,071 101,349 

Age of reference person ........................................ 49.1 69.0 42.4 65.3 47.5 43.3 46.4 

Average number in consumer unit:

Persons ................................................................ 2.5 1.0 1.0 2.3 3.0 3.1 4.4 

Children under 18 ................................................ .6 n.a. n.a. .3 1.0 .9 1.0 

Persons 65 and older ........................................... .3 .7 .1 1.2 .3 .1 .1 

Earners ................................................................ 1.3 n.a. 1.0 n.a. 1.0 2.0 3.3 

Vehicles ............................................................... 2.0 .9 1.2 1.8 1.9 2.5 3.2 

Percent distribution:

Sex of reference person:

Male ..................................................................... 47 34 54 50 39 51 47 

Female ................................................................. 53 66 46 50 61 49 53 

Housing tenure:

Homeowner ......................................................... 66 58 44 77 67 75 80 

With mortgage ................................................... 42 13 30 19 44 59 63 

Without mortgage .............................................. 24 45 13 58 23 17 17 

Renter .................................................................. 34 42 56 23 33 25 20 

Race of reference person:

Black or African-American ................................... 12 14 13 13 15 9 11 

White, Asian, and all other races ......................... 88 86 87 87 85 91 89 

Hispanic or Latino origin of reference person:

Hispanic or Latino ................................................ 12 5 9 8 16 12 18 

Not Hispanic or Latino ......................................... 88 95 91 92 84 88 82 

Education of reference person:

Elementary (1-8) .................................................. 5 10 2 9 6 2 6 

High school (9-12) ............................................... 35 48 26 45 37 31 37 

College ................................................................. 60 41 72 46 56 66 57 

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

At least one vehicle owned or leased .................... 89 67 82 87 91 96 96 

Annual aggregate expenditures ............................... $6,094,697 4.8 12.5 6.8 20.8 43.9 11.3 

Food ....................................................................... 776,825 4.7 11.5 7.9 22.0 42.1 11.8 

Food at home ....................................................... 451,454 5.5 9.6 9.5 24.0 39.9 11.5 

Cereals and bakery products ............................. 61,119 5.8 9.0 9.4 24.5 39.5 11.8 

Cereals and cereal products ............................ 20,448 5.1 8.5 9.0 25.3 40.1 11.9 

Bakery products ............................................... 40,671 6.2 9.3 9.6 24.0 39.2 11.7 

Meats, poultry, fish, and eggs ............................ 102,033 5.2 9.1 9.7 24.9 39.3 11.7 

Beef ................................................................. 28,799 4.8 8.5 9.1 24.9 40.4 12.4 

Pork ................................................................. 19,649 5.3 8.4 10.8 25.4 38.0 12.1 

Other meats ..................................................... 12,837 4.9 9.2 10.5 23.8 39.5 12.0 

Poultry .............................................................. 19,175 4.4 9.6 9.0 25.8 39.4 11.8 

Fish and seafood ............................................. 15,417 6.8 10.0 9.1 24.3 39.6 10.1 

Eggs ................................................................. 6,156 5.9 10.4 10.2 25.1 37.6 10.8 

Dairy products .................................................... 51,786 5.8 9.9 9.6 23.7 40.4 10.7 

Fresh milk and cream ...................................... 20,269 6.0 9.6 8.8 25.1 40.1 10.4 

Other dairy products ........................................ 31,518 5.6 10.1 10.1 22.8 40.5 10.9 

See footnotes at end of table.
Table 60. Number of earners in 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

Single consumers Consumer units of two or more persons

No earner One earner No earner One earner Two earners

Three or

more

earners

Fruits and vegetables ........................................ $79,194 6.0 10.0 9.8 24.3 39.0 11.0 

Fresh fruits ....................................................... 26,756 6.2 9.5 9.6 25.0 39.0 10.7 

Fresh vegetables ............................................. 25,542 5.9 10.1 9.5 24.6 39.2 10.8 

Processed fruits ............................................... 14,032 6.3 10.6 9.8 22.9 38.7 11.6 

Processed vegetables ..................................... 12,864 5.2 10.0 10.8 23.5 38.9 11.6 

Other food at home ............................................ 157,321 5.3 9.9 9.2 23.2 40.7 11.7 

Sugar and other sweets ................................... 15,580 6.1 9.0 9.5 23.4 39.3 12.7 

Fats and oils .................................................... 12,595 6.0 9.6 11.5 23.9 37.5 11.5 

Miscellaneous foods ........................................ 81,963 5.2 10.2 8.7 23.1 41.6 11.3 

Nonalcoholic beverages .................................. 41,289 5.1 9.9 9.1 23.2 40.2 12.5 

Food prepared by consumer unit on

out-of-town trips ............................................. 5,894 4.8 9.9 10.8 22.2 41.6 10.8 

Food away from home ......................................... 325,371 3.5 14.1 5.8 19.3 45.1 12.2 

Alcoholic beverages ............................................... 53,558 3.6 20.6 6.0 16.9 43.1 9.8 

Housing .................................................................. 2,065,912 6.2 13.3 6.7 21.9 42.0 9.9 

Shelter ................................................................. 1,229,818 6.1 15.4 5.8 21.4 41.9 9.5 

Owned dwellings ................................................ 816,456 4.3 11.5 5.8 21.7 46.1 10.6 

Mortgage interest and charges ........................ 462,120 2.1 11.7 2.7 21.9 50.8 10.9 

Property taxes .................................................. 212,347 6.6 10.4 8.6 21.8 42.4 10.3 

Maintenance, repairs, insurance, other

expenses ....................................................... 141,988 8.3 12.6 12.1 20.8 36.2 9.9 

Rented dwellings ............................................... 329,033 11.0 26.0 4.9 20.9 30.7 6.4 

Other lodging ..................................................... 84,330 3.3 11.0 8.8 20.3 46.0 10.5 

Utilities, fuels, and public services ....................... 440,720 6.9 11.1 8.8 22.2 39.5 11.5 

Natural gas ........................................................ 64,158 7.7 10.8 8.7 22.2 39.4 11.1 

Electricity ........................................................... 163,444 7.1 10.7 9.2 22.7 39.3 10.9 

Fuel oil and other fuels ...................................... 23,163 9.3 10.5 12.9 21.6 35.9 9.8 

Telephone services ............................................ 136,089 5.9 12.2 7.3 21.6 40.3 12.7 

Water and other public services ........................ 53,865 7.0 9.9 9.3 22.6 39.6 11.6 

Household operations .......................................... 120,468 7.0 7.8 6.8 22.5 48.7 7.1 

Personal services .............................................. 46,280 4.5 21.1 4.4 24.5 60.8 4.8 

Other household expenses ................................ 74,189 8.6 12.0 8.4 21.3 41.1 8.5 

Housekeeping supplies ........................................ 78,880 5.7 9.6 10.2 24.3 38.5 11.8 

Laundry and cleaning supplies .......................... 17,821 5.6 9.4 9.8 26.2 38.4 10.6 

Other household products ................................. 42,224 5.0 7.9 9.9 24.0 39.0 14.3 

Postage and stationery ...................................... 18,834 7.4 13.5 11.2 23.2 37.4 7.2 

Household furnishings and equipment ................ 196,026 4.8 10.7 6.8 22.9 44.8 10.0 

Household textiles ............................................. 15,234 5.9 7.8 7.7 25.2 42.6 10.8 

Furniture ............................................................ 46,812 4.4 11.3 5.5 24.3 46.0 8.6 

Floor coverings .................................................. 5,383 4.7 6.2 9.4 25.6 46.6 7.4 

Major appliances ................................................ 24,651 4.2 9.0 8.2 21.0 46.6 11.1 

Small appliances, miscellaneous housewares .. 13,616 6.9 12.8 8.2 20.1 42.2 9.8 

Miscellaneous household equipment ................. 90,330 4.7 11.3 6.5 22.7 44.4 10.4 

Apparel and services ............................................. 217,176 3.8 11.0 5.8 22.8 46.0 10.7 

Men and boys ...................................................... 51,483 1.7 11.7 6.4 22.0 46.9 11.3 

Men, 16 and over ............................................... 41,502 2.0 13.7 6.7 19.1 46.4 12.1 

Boys, 2 to 15 ...................................................... 9,981 .6 3.1 5.3 34.4 48.6 7.9 

Women and girls .................................................. 86,595 5.0 10.4 6.1 21.9 45.2 11.4 

Women, 16 and over ......................................... 71,960 5.8 11.8 6.5 20.3 44.0 11.6 

Girls, 2 to 15 ...................................................... 14,635 1.1 3.3 4.0 30.1 51.0 10.4 

Children under 2 .................................................. 11,185 1.4 3.7 4.2 30.8 51.3 8.5 

Footwear .............................................................. 37,909 3.6 10.8 5.1 25.4 45.3 9.6 

Other apparel products and services ................... 30,004 4.7 14.4 5.0 20.2 45.5 10.1 

See footnotes at end of table.
Table 60. Number of earners in 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

Single consumers Consumer units of two or more persons

No earner One earner No earner One earner Two earners

Three or

more

earners

Transportation ........................................................ $1,038,811 3.3 11.7 7.1 19.2 45.6 13.1 

Vehicle purchases (net outlay) ............................ 332,698 1.8 11.0 7.2 17.8 48.7 13.5 

Cars and trucks, new ......................................... 157,600 22.1 10.2 7.6 16.8 53.1 10.2 

Cars and trucks, used ........................................ 158,872 1.2 12.1 6.6 18.9 44.5 16.6 

Other vehicles .................................................... 16,225 23.9 8.9 29.1 16.5 46.3 15.3 

Gasoline and motor oil ......................................... 327,872 3.4 11.4 6.5 20.9 44.3 13.6 

Other vehicle expenses ....................................... 316,280 4.5 12.3 7.3 19.0 44.1 12.9 

Vehicle finance charges ..................................... 37,717 1.3 9.9 3.8 19.7 50.7 14.6 

Maintenance and repairs ................................... 88,214 4.8 12.8 7.1 19.7 41.9 13.7 

Vehicle insurance .............................................. 134,230 5.3 12.8 9.0 17.7 42.0 13.2 

Vehicle rental, leases, licenses, and other

charges ............................................................ 56,120 4.1 12.1 5.8 20.5 47.8 9.7 

Public transportation ............................................ 61,961 4.5 13.2 9.0 19.3 44.1 9.9 

Healthcare ............................................................. 359,365 9.1 8.7 15.0 22.2 35.6 9.5 

Health insurance .................................................. 199,678 10.6 8.2 15.6 21.9 34.9 8.8 

Medical services .................................................. 87,755 5.8 9.7 12.0 22.2 39.6 10.7 

Drugs ................................................................... 58,197 8.7 9.0 17.8 23.4 31.5 9.6 

Medical supplies .................................................. 13,734 8.8 8.1 15.3 20.7 36.0 10.9 

Entertainment ........................................................ 342,185 4.4 12.5 6.7 20.2 46.6 9.5 

Fees and admissions ........................................... 74,337 3.0 12.2 6.1 21.5 47.0 10.3 

Audio and visual equipment and services ........... 125,111 5.8 13.6 7.3 20.0 43.0 10.3 

Pets, toys, hobbies, and playground equipment .. 84,872 4.4 13.0 6.0 19.5 48.4 8.6 

Other entertainment supplies, equipment, and

services .............................................................. 57,865 3.0 9.8 7.5 20.2 51.4 8.1 

Personal care products and services ..................... 74,300 6.1 12.1 7.7 20.7 42.3 11.2 

Reading ................................................................. 14,030 8.2 13.7 10.8 19.8 37.9 9.5 

Education ............................................................... 126,275 3.5 13.2 2.7 17.6 46.1 16.9 

Tobacco products and smoking supplies ............... 38,244 5.3 14.4 7.8 21.5 38.2 12.9 

Miscellaneous ........................................................ 101,374 4.2 15.1 6.4 19.9 45.8 8.6 

Cash contributions ................................................. 209,721 7.5 14.4 9.4 21.8 36.9 9.9 

Personal insurance and pensions .......................... 676,923 .3 13.3 .9 18.1 53.6 13.9 

Life and other personal insurance ....................... 38,264 3.6 6.3 7.3 25.6 45.3 11.9 

Pensions and Social Security .............................. 638,659 2.1 13.7 .5 17.6 54.1 14.0 

Sources of income and personal taxes:

Money income before taxes ................................... 7,676,460 3.1 12.0 4.4 19.1 48.5 12.9 

Wages and salaries ............................................. 6,160,177 3 ( ) 13.0 3 ( ) 18.3 53.9 14.8 

Self-employment income ..................................... 388,778 3 ( ) 13.0 3 ( ) 21.0 53.9 12.1 

Social Security, private and government

retirement ........................................................... 794,300 23.4 4.2 34.5 22.5 13.0 2.4 

Interest, dividends, rental income, other property

income ............................................................... 182,259 16.2 9.6 20.0 20.0 30.4 3.8 

Unemployment and workers’ compensation,

veterans’ benefits ............................................... 27,198 6.9 12.2 11.7 18.7 43.0 7.5 

Public assistance, supplemental security income,

food stamps ....................................................... 44,800 19.2 3.1 29.3 31.2 12.3 4.9 

Regular contributions for support ......................... 53,864 12.0 15.4 17.9 30.3 19.4 5.1 

Other income ....................................................... 25,084 15.5 21.1 9.5 22.0 25.2 6.8 

See footnotes at end of table.
Table 60. Number of earners in 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

Single consumers Consumer units of two or more persons

No earner One earner No earner One earner Two earners

Three or

more

earners

Personal taxes ....................................................... $216,057 -.2 19.8 -1.0 12.0 57.1 12.3 

Federal income taxes .......................................... 219,443 .8 17.5 1.1 14.0 54.1 12.5 

2008 Tax stimulus (new UCC Q20082) ............... -94,645 4.3 9.2 7.2 22.1 44.9 12.3 

State and local income taxes ............................... 65,485 .4 15.0 .5 16.9 54.6 12.6 

Other taxes .......................................................... 25,774 5.9 12.4 7.7 19.4 43.9 10.6 

Income after taxes ................................................. 7,460,402 3.2 11.8 4.6 19.3 48.2 13.0 

1 Value less than or equal to 0.5. 2 Data are likely to have large sampling errors.3 No data reported.