The Great Neighbor Index
According to the 2020 PEMCO Insurance Northwest Poll, Seattle-area residents enjoy their neighbors more than they used to (Index score of 40 vs. 27 in 2015) – but that still doesn’t mean they want to be invited over to visit. How about you? Have you gotten closer or more distant from your neighbors in recent years? Has the pandemic played a role?
When you think about the neighbors in your immediate vicinity—like on your block or in your building—how many of them have you met in person?
| Seattle Metro | Portland Metro | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 2014 | 2020 | 2014 | |
| 42 | 42 | 43 | 39 | Less than one-quarter |
| 19 | 25 | 18 | 18 | Between one-quarter and one-half |
| 17 | 15 | 15 | 23 | Between one-half and three-quarters |
| 19 | 16 | 21 | 19 | Between three-quarters and all, or almost all |
| 3 | 2 | 3 | 1 | No neighbors / Don’t know |
When you think about the neighbors in your immediate vicinity—like on your block or in your building—how many of them have you met in person?
| Seattle Metro | Portland Metro | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Own | Rent | Own | Rent | |
| 33 | 59 | 36 | 57 | Less than one-quarter |
| 23 | 13 | 21 | 13 | Between one-quarter and one-half |
| 19 | 15 | 16 | 12 | Between one-half and three-quarters |
| 23 | 10 | 26 | 13 | Between three-quarters and all, or almost all |
| 2 | 3 | 1 | 5 | No neighbors / Don’t know |
When you think about how safe your neighborhood is, how big of a concern is this to you, personally?
| Seattle Metro | Portland Metro | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 2014 | 2020 | 2014 | |
| 7 | 7 | 7 | 6 | Extremely concerned |
| 13 | 10 | 10 | 7 | Very concerned |
| 27 | 25 | 25 | 31 | Somewhat concerned |
| 35 | 38 | 38 | 41 | Not very concerned |
| 18 | 19 | 19 | 14 | Not at all concerned |
When you think about how safe your neighborhood is, how big of a concern is this to you, personally?
| Seattle Metro | Portland Metro | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| < 55 | 55 + | < 55 | 55 + | |
| 9 | 4 | 9 | 6 | Extremely concerned |
| 17 | 8 | 10 | 10 | Very concerned |
| 26 | 28 | 28 | 21 | Somewhat concerned |
| 31 | 40 | 37 | 39 | Not very concerned |
| 16 | 20 | 15 | 24 | Not at all concerned |
When you go on vacation, do you let other people in your neighborhood know that you will be gone?
| Seattle Metro | Portland Metro | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 2014 | 2020 | 2014 | |
| 24 | 23 | 20 | 21 | Always |
| 19 | 24 | 22 | 22 | Usually |
| 19 | 15 | 18 | 19 | Sometimes |
| 13 | 16 | 15 | 17 | Rarely |
| 23 | 21 | 24 | 19 | Never |
When you go on vacation, do you let other people in your neighborhood know that you will be gone?
| Seattle Metro | Portland Metro | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Male | Female | Male | Female | |
| 27 | 21 | 23 | 17 | Always |
| 20 | 18 | 24 | 21 | Usually |
| 18 | 19 | 19 | 17 | Sometimes |
| 12 | 13 | 15 | 15 | Rarely |
| 20 | 25 | 18 | 28 | Never |
When you go on vacation, do you let other people in your neighborhood know that you will be gone?
| Seattle Metro | Portland Metro | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| < 55 | 55 + | < 55 | 55 + | |
| 13 | 37 | 11 | 31 | Always |
| 17 | 23 | 17 | 28 | Usually |
| 23 | 14 | 20 | 15 | Sometimes |
| 15 | 9 | 17 | 13 | Rarely |
| 28 | 15 | 33 | 12 | Never |
Sum of great neighbors minus sum of bad neighbors, with Net Index Score (net value summed across all respondents)
| Seattle Metro | Portland Metro | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 2014 | 2020 | 2014 | |
| 12 | 20 | 15 | 15 | Net negative (more bad neighbors than great ones) |
| 8 | 11 | 10 | 12 | Net zero (same number of bad and great ones) |
| 88 | 69 | 75 | 73 | Net positive (more great neighbors than bad ones) |
| 40 | 27 | 38 | 35 | Net Great Neighbor Index score (GNI) |
In your opinion, which of these things are most important when describing what it means to be a great neighbor? (Pick up to five.)
| Seattle Metro | Portland Metro | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 2014 | 2020 | 2014 | |
| 55 | 45 | 54 | 51 | Respects the rights of others and is reasonable when issues need to be resolved |
| 47 | 54 | 46 | 49 | Trustworthy with high integrity |
| 46 | 36 | 46 | 45 | Watches out for your place when you’re gone |
| 44 | NA | 46 | NA | Is respectful of shared spaces |
| 38 | 34 | 37 | 45 | Maintains their home and vehicles with pride |
| 37 | 57 | 44 | 54 | Helpful when asked |
| 30 | 35 | 33 | 33 | Quiet |
| 30 | 40 | 32 | 38 | Courteous, but not overly talkative or chatty |
| 28 | 34 | 27 | 36 | Willing to share belongings such as a ladder or cup of sugar (without exchanging money) |
| 28 | NA | 29 | NA | Does a great job following public health guidelines like wearing a mask and/or practicing social distancing |
| 26 | 17 | 30 | 20 | Approachable, but keeps their distance |
| 28 | 29 | 26 | 29 | Always talks to you when s/he sees you |
| 24 | 22 | 24 | 28 | If they have pets, the pets stay in their own yard and/or are quiet |
| 6 | 9 | 5 | 3 | Is interested and asks a lot of questions about you and/or your family |
| 5 | 6 | 4 | 2 | Frequently invites you over |
| 2 | 4 | 1 | 1 | Often has loud parties with multiple guests |
| 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | None of these |
| 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | Don’t know |
In your opinion, which of these things are most important when describing what it means to be a great neighbor? (Pick up to five.)
| Seattle Metro | Portland Metro | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 2014 | 2020 | 2014 | |
| 55 | 45 | 54 | 51 | Respects the rights of others and is reasonable when issues need to be resolved |
| 47 | 54 | 46 | 49 | Trustworthy with high integrity |
| 46 | 36 | 46 | 45 | Watches out for your place when you’re gone |
| 44 | NA | 46 | NA | Is respectful of shared spaces |
| 38 | 34 | 37 | 45 | Maintains their home and vehicles with pride |
| 37 | 57 | 44 | 54 | Helpful when asked |
| 30 | 35 | 33 | 33 | Quiet |
| 30 | 40 | 32 | 38 | Courteous, but not overly talkative or chatty |
| 28 | 34 | 27 | 36 | Willing to share belongings such as a ladder or cup of sugar (without exchanging money) |
| 28 | NA | 29 | NA | Does a great job following public health guidelines like wearing a mask and/or practicing social distancing |
| 26 | 17 | 30 | 20 | Approachable, but keeps their distance |
| 28 | 29 | 26 | 29 | Always talks to you when s/he sees you |
| 24 | 22 | 24 | 28 | If they have pets, the pets stay in their own yard and/or are quiet |
| 6 | 9 | 5 | 3 | Is interested and asks a lot of questions about you and/or your family |
| 5 | 6 | 4 | 2 | Frequently invites you over |
| 2 | 4 | 1 | 1 | Often has loud parties with multiple guests |
| 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | None of these |
| 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | Don’t know |
In your opinion, which of these things are most important when describing what it means to be a bad neighbor? (Pick up to five.)
| Seattle Metro | Portland Metro | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 2014 | 2020 | 2014 | |
| 61 | 62 | 64 | 66 | Does not respect the rights of others and is not reasonable when issues need to be resolved |
| 58 | 69 | 61 | 73 | Often has loud parties with multiple guests |
| 56 | NA | 58 | NA | Is disrespectful of shared spaces |
| 53 | 65 | 52 | 71 | Is not trustworthy |
| 42 | 40 | 44 | 60 | If they have pets, the pets do not stay in their own yard and/or are noisy |
| 41 | 42 | 43 | 51 | Does not maintain their home and vehicles with pride |
| 30 | NA | 31 | NA | Does not do a great job following public health guidelines like wearing a mask and/or practicing social distancing |
| 22 | 26 | 20 | 19 | Not helpful when asked |
| 19 | 19 | 24 | 17 | Is not approachable, and stays very distant |
| 15 | 25 | 17 | 24 | Rarely talks to you when s/he sees you |
| 10 | 8 | 9 | 6 | Does not watch out for your place when you’re gone |
| 7 | 10 | 9 | 10 | Is not interested in you and/or your family |
| 7 | 10 | 7 | 7 | Not willing to share belongings such as a ladder or cup of sugar (without exchanging money) |
| 4 | 8 | 6 | 6 | Courteous, but is overly talkative or chatty |
| 3 | 5 | 2 | 1 | Frequently invites you over |
| 3 | 4 | 2 | 1 | Is quiet |
| 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | None of these |
| 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | Don’t know / No answer |
In general, since the start of the pandemic, when you think about how regularly you speak or chat with, or get together with, any of your neighbors (whether in person or online), would you say you’ve engaged with them more since the start of the pandemic, less, or has the amount of time you engage with neighbors not changed?
| Seattle Metro | Portland Metro | |
|---|---|---|
| 16 | 14 | Engaged more |
| 53 | 57 | Stayed the same |
| 30 | 25 | Engaged less |
| 1 | 4 | Don’t know |
Why have you engaged less frequently with your neighbors since the start of the pandemic?
| Seattle Metro | Portland Metro | |
|---|---|---|
| 196 | 154 | Those less likely to engage |
| 88 | 86 | Because of social distancing and stay-at home guidelines I’m less likely to run into my neighbors |
| 60 | 56 | The stay-at-home orders because of COVID-19 have made it harder or more dangerous to engage with them |
| 25 | 21 | We do not have any neighborhood issues to resolve that require us to talk |
| 9 | 14 | I feel less of a desire or responsibility to check in with them |
| 5 | 5 | I don’t need my neighbors’ help as much as I used to |
| 6 | 4 | My neighbors don’t need my help as much as they used to |
| 4 | 3 | I don’t care about my neighbors as much as I used to |
Why have you engaged with your neighbors more since the start of the pandemic?
| Seattle Metro | Portland Metro | |
|---|---|---|
| 102 | 85 | Those more likely to engage |
| 79 | 75 | I’m spending more time at home and have been more likely to see my neighbors |
| 58 | 55 | The stay-at-home order because of COVID-19 have given us reasons to engage more frequently |
| 39 | 29 | I feel a great desire or responsibility to check in with them |
| 23 | 21 | I care about my neighbors more than I used to |
| 15 | 8 | I need their help more than I used to |
| 15 | 8 | They need my help more than they used to |
| 9 | 4 | There have been issues that need to be resolved, creating a need to talk |
About the PEMCO Insurance Northwest Poll
PEMCO Insurance commissioned this independent survey, conducted by FBK Research of Seattle, that
asked Washington and Oregon residents questions about driving habits and attitudes toward current
Northwest issues. The sample size, 578 respondents in Washington and 427 in Oregon, yields an
accuracy of +/- 4.2 and 4.8% respectively at the 95% confidence level. In other words, if this study
were conducted 100 times, in 95 instances the data will not vary by more than the associated error
range.
Supplemental interviews were conducted with people living in the Seattle metro area, including King,
Snohomish and Pierce counties, and those in the Portland metro area, including Clackamas, Marion,
Multnomah and Washington counties. The sample size, 578 respondents in the Seattle area and 509 in
the Portland area, yields an accuracy of +/- 4.2% and +/- 4.4% respectively at the 95% confidence
level.
About PEMCO Insurance
PEMCO Insurance is the Defender of Your Northwest, providing auto, home, renters and boat coverage.
We are consistently recognized for outstanding service, employee expertise and social impact. Our
Mutual Good programs raise the achievement levels for youth in education; build stronger, greener
environments; and increase safety at home, on the road and at play. Our mission: Free our
communities to worry less and live more.
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