Nov. 5--An older citizenry, fewer families and smaller households are just a few of the changes that have come to Prince William the past few years, according to recently released demographics.

"The median age of the population is 32.9 years," according to third quarter statistics compiled by county staffers. "Prince William County's population, while younger on the average than the nation's, has aged slightly since 1990, when the median age was 29.1."

Census Bureau numbers from 2008, the most recent available, find that the level of those in the county who are 65 and older has risen steadily the past two decades, from 3 percent of the total population in 1990 to 4.8 percent in 2000 to 6.6 percent in 2008. Meanwhile, the level of those aged between 18 and 64 has fallen off during this same time frame, from 66.4 percent of the total county population in 1990 to 64.8 percent in 2000 to 64.1 percent in 2008.

Those figures--the decline in the 18- to 64-year-old crowd and uptick in the 65-plus range--correspond to a fall in the number of families who live in Prince William.

"As of September 15, 2009, there are an estimated 132,920 households in [the county] ... 76.6 percent [of which] are occupied by families," according to the county's third quarter report. "This represents a decrease of 4.1 percentage points since 2000, when 80.7 percent of households in the county were families."

The size of the families living in the county has dropped, too.

"[The county's] average household size, according to the Census 2000, was 2.94 persons in 2000, which is down from 3.04 persons in 1990," states the third quarter report.

Staff writer Cheryl Chumley can be reached at 703-670-1907.

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