Life Skills and Money Education in Lamar, CO
About 7,641 people live in Lamar, Colorado, making it among the larger communities in Colorado, ranking 64th of 270 by population. It has lost residents since 2020, slipping 0.8% from 7,703 down to 7,641. The median age is 33.1.
Among adults 25 and older in Lamar, 19.2% hold a bachelor's degree or higher. That sits 10.1 points below the Colorado average of 29.3%. Flip that figure and it describes 80.8% of the 4,475 adults 25 and over counted in the 2019–2023 ACS, about 3,616 people whose money skills came from somewhere other than a university.
Median household income is $58,487. That is $10,970 below the Colorado median. Roughly 20% of residents live below the poverty line, which puts real weight on decisions about credit, rent and emergency savings. The median home is valued at $137,100, roughly 2.3× median household income.
Lamar by the numbers
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Population (2024) | 7,641 |
| Change since 2020 | -0.8% |
| Median household income | $58,487 |
| Adults 25+ with a bachelor’s degree | 19.2% |
| Adults 25+ with a high school diploma | 83.2% |
| Median age | 33.1 |
| Poverty rate | 20% |
| Unemployment rate | 6.4% |
| Median home value | $137,100 |
| Land area | 5.217 sq mi |
| Population density | 1,465 / sq mi |
What Colorado teaches — and to whom
Colorado has committed to 1 semester of personal finance as a graduation requirement, phasing in with the class of 2030 — so today's middle schoolers will be the first cohort held to it. That covers students still in the system. It does nothing for the adults already out of it — which, in Lamar, is most of the people reading this.
LearnLife organises this the way the decisions actually arrive: Legal literacy — leases, contracts, employment rights and what a signature actually commits you to; Money — budgeting, credit, debt and taxes — the mechanics nobody is formally taught; Emotional regulation — the self-management that decides whether the other skills ever get used.
Where to start in Lamar
Build a buffer before anything else
With 20% of Lamar living below the poverty line, the single highest-return skill here is cash-flow control: knowing what actually lands each month, what leaves automatically, and how to build even a small buffer between the two. A few hundred dollars of slack is the difference between a car repair being an inconvenience and it being a payday loan.
Treat income stability as a skill
Unemployment in Lamar sits at 6.4%. Where work is less certain, the practical skills are the defensive ones: what unemployment insurance actually pays and how fast, how to read a severance agreement, and which bills to triage first when income stops.
Questions people ask about Lamar
Do high school students in Lamar, Colorado have to take a personal finance class?
Yes — Colorado has adopted a standalone requirement, phasing in with the graduating class of 2030. Students graduating before then are not covered.
How many adults in Lamar, Colorado have a college degree?
19.2% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor's degree or higher, based on the Census Bureau's 2019–2023 American Community Survey. The remaining 80.8% are managing their finances without one.
What is the median household income in Lamar, Colorado?
$58,487, per the Census Bureau's 2019–2023 American Community Survey.
Where can adults in Lamar, Colorado learn personal finance?
Graduation requirements only ever reach people still in school. For adults, LearnLife covers the same ground on demand — money, legal literacy and the self-management that decides whether either gets used.
Start with whichever one is costing you money right now.
Browse the LearnLife catalog