Yakima / Tri-Cities DMA

The Market

The Yakima/ Tri-Cities DMA’s Hispanic population centers are split by about 80 miles with the Yakima Metro (plus the Lower Valley) in the north, and the Tri-Cities of Richland, Pasco, and Kennewick (including Walla Walla and Herminston, Oregon) in the south. They really are two separate markets served by their own local Spanish media. About 60% of the Hispanic population is in the north Metro with the remainder in the Tri-Cities end of the DMA. Both areas share a giant influx of thousands of migrant Latinos each year in this agricultural heart of Washington State. Households are very large at an average 4.1 persons each, almost double of their general market counterparts.

(All Figures Are For Permanent Hispanics And Do Not Include The Migrant Population)

Income and Buying Power Total DMA	Yakima Metro	Tri-Cities
Total Hispanic Resident Buying Power $2.5 billion	$1.3 billion	$1.3 billion
Average Area Hispanic Household Income $55,485
Total Resident Hispanic Retail Spending $1.1 billion	$627 million	$473 million
Retail Spending (In Millions)
Grocery/ Supermarkets $352	$200 million	$152 million
Restaurants/ Fast Food $132	$75 million	$57 million
General Merchandise $ 99	$89 million	$43 million
Apparel/ Accessories $ 66	$38 million	$28 million
Appliances/ Furniture/ Electronics $ 44	$25 million	$19 million
Auto Dealerships $154	$88 million	$66 million
Auto Fuel, Parts, Accessories, Service $ 66	$38 million	$28 million
Drug/ Variety Stores $ 33>	$19 million	$14 million
All Other Retailers $154	$88 million	$66 million

Estimated Population Distribution Of Permanent Hispanic Residents

Yakima County	125,000
Kittitas E. County	1,525
Total Yakima Metro	95,605
Franklin County	26,880 (45%)
Benton County	20,160 (13%)
Walla Walla County	10,080 (16%)
Umatilla County (Oregon)	11,760 (15%)
Morrow County (Oregon)	3,360 (24%)
Total Tri- Cities/ Columbia Basin	72,240
Total Yakima/ Tri-Cities DMA	167,845

Source Information

All numbers and percentages are estimated averages gathered from the following sources;

Benton County Quick Facts from the U.S. Census Bureau

The Larson Northwest Hispanic Market Report: 2006-2007 Edition

U.S. Census Bureau, Census 2000; Profile of General Demographic Characteristics: 2000, geographic area, Yakima County, Washington

Yakima County, Yakima School District, Ethnic Distribution Profile for 2002-2003