If a town of 25,000 people is growing

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BTGmoderatorDC: Moderator; Posts: 7187; Joined: Thu Sep 07, 2017 4:43 pm; Followed by:23 members

If a town of 25,000 people is growing

by BTGmoderatorDC » Mon Dec 18, 2017 5:11 am

If a town of 25,000 people is growing at a rate of approx. 1% per year, the population of the town in 5 years will be closest to?

a.26000
b.27000
c.28000
d.29000
e.30000

How can i find the best solution in this? Can some experts help?

OA A

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Source: Beat The GMAT — Problem Solving | Mon Dec 18, 2017 5:11 am

EconomistGMATTutor: GMAT Instructor; Posts: 555; Joined: Wed Oct 04, 2017 4:18 pm; Thanked: 180 times; Followed by:12 members

by EconomistGMATTutor » Tue Dec 19, 2017 6:25 am

Hello lheiannie07.

Let's take a look at your question.

The population at the beginning is 25,000.

After 1 year the population would be equal to 25,000*0.01+25,000 = 25,000*1.01= 25,250.

After 2 years the population would be equal to 25,250*0.01 + 25,250 = 25,250*1.01 = 25,502.5.

After 3 years the population would be equal to 25,502.5*1.01= 25,760.555.

After 4 years the population would be equal to 25,760.555*1.01 = 26,018.16055.

And finally, after 5 years the population would be equal to 26,018.16055*1.01 = 26,278.3421.

So, the correct answer is [spoiler]A=26,000[/spoiler].

I hope this can help you.

I'm available if you'd like a follow-up.

Regards.

GMAT Prep From The Economist
We offer 70+ point score improvement money back guarantee.
Our average student improves 98 points.

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GMATWisdom: Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts; Posts: 100; Joined: Wed Nov 29, 2017 4:38 pm; Thanked: 14 times

by GMATWisdom » Tue Dec 19, 2017 6:40 am

lheiannie07 wrote:If a town of 25,000 people is growing at a rate of approx. 1% per year, the population of the town in 5 years will be closest to?

a.26000
b.27000
c.28000
d.29000
e.30000

How can i find the best solution in this? Can some experts help?

OA A

Since he is talking of approx 1%, we need not calculate exact figure.
Increase at a rate of approx 1% i.e. approx 250 per year for five years would be would be 1250
hence population would be close to 26250
Hence option A is correct

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Scott@TargetTestPrep: GMAT Instructor; Posts: 8083; Joined: Sat Apr 25, 2015 10:56 am; Location: Los Angeles, CA; Thanked: 43 times; Followed by:29 members

by Scott@TargetTestPrep » Tue Oct 15, 2019 6:29 pm

BTGmoderatorDC wrote:If a town of 25,000 people is growing at a rate of approx. 1% per year, the population of the town in 5 years will be closest to?

a.26000
b.27000
c.28000
d.29000
e.30000

How can i find the best solution in this? Can some experts help?

OA A

After 1 year, the population will be:

25,000 + 250 = 25,250

After 2 years, the population will be:

25,250 + 252 = 25,502

After 3 years, the population will be:

25,502 + 255 = 25,757

So essentially, we see that the population growth is a little more than 250 people a year.

25,000 + 250 x 5 = 26,250, so about 26,000.

Alternate solution:

The population of the town in 5 years is:

25,000 x (1 + 0.01)^5 = 25,000 x 1.01^5 = 26,275, which is closest to 26,000.

Answer: A

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