Long - Term Trends in Rural Depopulation and Their Implications for Community Banks

44 2014, Volume 8, No. 2 This is not the first time FDIC analysts have addressed the subject of rural depopulation. A 2004 issue of the FDIC Banking Review contained an article titled “Rural Depopulation: What Does It Mean for the Future Economic Health of Rural Areas and the Community Banks That Support Them?” 3 That article explored the relationship among agriculture, population density, and depopulation for the period 1970 to 2000, describing the demographic components of the rural depopulation trend as well as the roles played by technological change and organizational innovation. Focusing on the Great Plains region, the article noted the pressures that depopulation can place on both sides of the banking balance sheet and the difficulties it can pose in the recruitment and retention of bank management and staff.