With 0.1 jobs for every working resident, most of Houston Lake works elsewhere
Working from home is the commute for 29% of workers, against 13% across Missouri. 7 jobs are based in Houston Lake; 116 of its residents have a job. Hardly any stay in Houston Lake for work; outside it, Kansas City is the main destination (42%, 6 miles).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Houston Lake on a workday afternoon
On a workday 116 residents head out to work, none work right here, and 7 people come in from elsewhere.
About 120 people are in Houston Lake on a workday afternoon, 48% fewer than live here.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2024, primary jobs.
The places Houston Lake commutes to
Where Houston Lake clocks in
42% of workersLines run between town centers. The top 10 towns each way; “Everywhere else” is the rest, including other states.
A thicker line means more commuters. Switch between where residents work and where the people who work here live.
In Houston Lake, services account for most jobs
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Houston Lake, 2014 → 2024: 4 → 7. Big swings can come from how a large employer reports its locations, not only from real openings or closings.
Primary jobs covered by unemployment insurance (not the self-employed). Pay is monthly earnings. LEHD 2024.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs Houston Lake’s own residents hold wherever they work.
About 18 minutes each way, quicker than most of Missouri
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 5.7 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Houston Lake workers work from home, vs 13% across Missouri. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 131 commuters (the 29% who work from home are left out). Across Missouri: 86% drive alone, 1% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
The distance from Houston Lake to work
Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2024.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Two sources, two years. Trips, distances and jobs based here: Census LEHD 2024, primary jobs, where the employer reports them. Income, poverty, unemployment, commute time and how people travel: Census ACS 2020–24 averages.
- Two counts of out-of-state work. The Census survey asks workers where they work: 7% of Houston Lake workers work outside Missouri. The job records count 23% at employers in other states. The records use the address the employer reports and skip the self-employed, so the two can differ.
- Straight lines, older transit. Miles are as the crow flies. EPA’s walkability and transit files use 2017–20 inputs.
Jobs and commuting in Houston Lake: questions
What is the median household income in Houston Lake?
$106,875 (±$32,795) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $70,702 across Missouri and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Houston Lake?
7.0%, against 12.6% across Missouri and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Houston Lake?
18 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Missouri and 26 nationally. 29% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Houston Lake work?
0% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Kansas City (42%, 6 mi), Kansas City (14%, 8 mi), Overland Park (5%, 21 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Can you get around Houston Lake without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 2% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Houston Lake, from the people who make the trip.
More of Houston Lake
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2024, primary jobs. Commute time, working from home and working out of state: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates. Distances are straight lines between home and work; real drives run longer.