Regional Matters

The Community Investment Training helps rural leaders jump-start development projects, and based on the 2024 and 2025 cohorts, the Richmond Fed's community development team shares some lessons learned.

According to our May business surveys, most firms are responding to tariffs in a variety of ways, including planning and implementing price increases, delaying capital expenditures, and changing hiring plans.

Although the U.S. has been graying, populations in many rural counties have actually grown younger over the last several years. What could this mean for rural economies?

Examining the history of Community Development Credit Unions shows the evolving role they played in helping to expand banking access to underserved individuals.

Survey data suggests firms are monitoring inflation and expect it to rise in the next year, many citing trade policy as a driving force behind the increase.

A look at where USDA Rural Development funding goes across the Fifth District. Which programs drive total investments, and which states and counties get the largest shares of funding?

Data from the Small Business Credit Survey show key differences between rural and urban small businesses, particularly around firm age, ability to access credit, and reliance on small banks.

Rural businesses were more likely to expect significant impacts from tariffs than their urban counterparts but were less likely to report those impacts would be negative.

This post highlights the short-term and potential long-term impacts of Hurricane Helene on Western North Carolina's housing market while also exploring how pre-existing market conditions may interact with the storm's impact.

In March, we asked Fifth District businesses about the impacts of tariffs. Most expected to be impacted negatively and anticipated passing through some of the additional costs to customers.