The Census Bureau’s American Community Survey collects a wide range of important statistics about communities across the country. A recent housing brief released by the Bureau – which used the survey to focus on homeownership rates and home values across the country – found that small counties fared better following the recession as compared to larger counties. Among the 50 largest metro areas, median home values fell in 43 of them and 49 out of 50 saw declining homeownership rates after the most recent recession. Among counties with populations between 20,000 and 65,000, on the other hand, 66.9 percent had median home values that were not statistically different from pre-recession levels. Nationally, the homeownership rate declined by 1.7 percent between 2010 and 2012. Washington D.C. had the lowest rate at 41.6 percent while West Virginia had the highest with 72.9 percent. More here and here.