logo
Data from Launching Low-Income Entrepreneurs

Data - April 2013

Data from Launching Low-Income Entrepreneurs

Selected charts and graphs from the Center for an Urban Future's major April 2013 report on low-income entrepreneurs. The report found that with middle-income jobs in decline, entrepreneurship offers an increasingly promising pathway out of poverty; but few low-income New Yorkers are currently taking this route to economic self-sufficiency.

Tags: economic growth economic opportunity entrepreneurship low income human capital boroughs

Self-Employment by ZIP Code

Click the buttons below to see data for each of New York City's five boroughs. Darker colors indicate higher self-employment rates.

Interactive map created by Cesar Bustamante


 

 


 

 


 

 


 

 


 

Self-Employment Rates in New York City’s 55 Census-Defined Neighborhoods

Neighborhoods with the lowest self-employment rates are predominantly low-income and native-born, while those in the middle range are still low-income but with much higher percentages of foreign-born residents.

Bottom Third: Neighborhoods with Lowest Self Employment Rates
Neighborhood % self employed Median income for persons 15+ years (2010) % of population that is foreign-born
East New York/Starrett City 3.9% $20,572 33.6%
Brownsville/Ocean Hill 4.0% $19,939 27.9%
Throgs Neck/Co-op City 4.3% $31,441 18.9%
Williamsbridge/Baychester 4.8% $27,524 38.4%
East Harlem 4.8% $19,153 25.4%
Soundview/Parkchester 5.6% $22,698 29.8%
East Flatbush 5.8% $26,705 53.0%
North Shore 6.2% $30,513 24.6%
Jamaica 6.5% $25,958 40.0%
Mott Haven/Hunts Point 6.8% $13,022 28.7%
Queens Village 6.9% $33,032 42.0%
Rockaways 7.0% $25,240 27.2%
Flatlands/Canarsie 7.1% $32,873 41.0%
Pelham Parkway 7.1% $27,086 35.0%
Morrisania/Belmont 7.2% $13,741 28.1%
South Shore 7.2% $41,180 14.3%
Coney Island 7.3% $20,582 51.3%
Bedford Stuyvesant 7.4% $21,441 20.1%
Average 6.1% $25,150 32.2%

 

Middle Third: Neighborhoods with Middle Range of Self-Employment Rates
Neighborhood % self employed Median income for persons 15+ years (2010) % of population that is foreign-born
Bushwick 7.4% $18,432 37.2%
Washington Heights/Inwood 7.8% $19,201 49.4%
South Crown Heights 7.9% $24,036 45.4%
South Ozone Park/Howard Beach 7.9% $27,083 46.5%
North Crown Heights/Prospect Heights 8.1% $27,357 30.9%
Kingsbridge Heights/Mosholu 8.1% $18,319 40.5%
Middle Village/Ridgewood 8.2% $28,592 37.4%
Highbridge/South Concourse 8.8% $16,001 39.4%
Riverdale/Kingsbridge 8.9% $31,599 32.0%
Bensonhurst 9.0% $21,870 52.9%
Sunset Park 9.1% $21,286 46.8%
Elmhurst/Corona 9.3% $22,384 66.9%
University Heights/Fordham 9.3% $14,811 40.4%
Sunnyside/Woodside 9.4% $28,700 58.5%
Bay Ridge 9.4% $30,048 37.1%
Jackson Heights 9.6% $22,916 63.4%
Astoria 9.7% $28,479 43.7%
Flatbush 9.8% $25,817 45.8%
Average 8.8% $23,718 45.2%

 

Top Third: Neighborhoods with Highest Self-Employment Rates
Neighborhood % self employed Median income for persons 15+ years (2010) % of population that is foreign-born
Sheepshead Bay/Gravesend 10.0% $26,925 45.7%
Central Harlem 10.1% $23,621 22.1%
Mid-Island 10.1% $34,466 25.4%
Ozone Park/Woodhaven 10.1% $27,531 49.9%
Hillcrest/Fresh Meadows 10.8% $30,236 46.4%
Rego Park/Forest Hills 10.9% $39,867 51.3%
Morningside Heights/Hamilton Heights 10.9% $22,389 34.7%
Williamsburg/Greenpoint 11.4% $24,655 24.9%
Flushing/Whitestone 11.7% $27,695 54.7%
Borough Park 11.9% $21,329 34.3%
Lower East Side/Chinatown 12.1% $24,839 35.6%
Brooklyn Heights/Fort Greene 12.3% $40,540 18.9%
Stuyvesant Town/Turtle-Bay 13.4% $63,499 23.5%
Bayside/Little Neck 13.5% $36,422 41.3%
Upper East Side 13.7% $70,675 21.4%
Chelsea/Clinton/Midtown 14.8% $51,129 25.8%
Park Slope/Carroll Gardens 16.1% $47,011 17.2%
Greenwich Village/Financial District 17.9% $60,680 23.1%
Upper West Side 18.3% $59,584 21.2%
Average 12.6% $38,583 32.5%


Source: 2007-2011 American Community Survey

 


 

Establishments per Capita in NYC’s 50 Poorest ZIP Codes

Low-income ZIP codes with high foreign born populations have significantly more local businesses.

ZIP Codes with Fewest Establishments per Capita
ZIP Code Neighborhood Number of Establishments Population Establishments / capita (%) Population that is foreign-born (%) Median Individual Income
11692 Arverne 90 18,540 0.5% 25.72% $21,176
11233 Stuyvesant Heights 364 67,053 0.5% 24.2% $24,008
11239 Starett City 76 13,393 0.6% 30.06% $16,328
10456 Morrisania 581 86,547 0.7% 32.03% $13,351
11221 Bushwick / Bedford-Stuyvesant 566 78,895 0.7% 26.56% $20,667
10039 Central Harlem, North 183 24,527 0.7% 19.53% $19,210
10472 Soundview 506 66,358 0.8% 37.73% $17,621
11208 Cypress Hills 745 94,469 0.8% 35.46% $21,082
10453 Morris Heights 630 78,309 0.8% 39.08% $14,769
11691 Far Rockaway 490 60,035 0.8% 32.62% $19,940

 

Zip Codes with Most Establishments per Capita
ZIP Code Neighborhood Number of Establishments Population Establishments / capita (%) Population that is foreign-born (%) Median Individual Income
11355 Flushing / Murray Hill 1,832 85,871 2.1% 70.41% $21,999
11220 Sunset Park 2,175 99,598 2.2% 53.03% $18,721
11204 Parkville / Bensonhurst 1,902 78,134 2.4% 44.05% $21,281
11223 Gravesend / Homecrest 1,948 78,731 2.5% 45.4% $22,269
11219 Borough Park 2,581 92,221 2.8% 39.84% $18,870
11211 Williamsburg 2,766 90,117 3.1% 20.68% $22,408
10002 Chinatown / Lower East Side 2,872 81,410 3.5% 44.57% $20,103
11232 Industry City / Sunset Park 1,174 28,265 4.2% 45.51% $20,973
11354 Flushing / Murray Hill 2,704 54,878 4.9% 61.9% $23,920
10474 Hunts Point 663 12,281 5.4% 26.57% $13,928


Sources: 2010 Census. Census County Business Patterns 2010.