Personal crime victimizations, which include personal theft and crimes of violence, increased by almost 600,000 to approximately 20 million in 1988. This was the second year in a row that the number of personal crimes increased. U.S. households and persons age 12 or older sustained 35.8 million crime victimizations in 1988. Of this total, 5.9 million were violent crimes; 14 million were crimes of personal theft; and 15.8 million were household crimes (burglary, household theft, and motor vehicle theft). Crime rates varied in different regions of the U.S.; only in the South did personal crimes show a significant increase. However, the West continued to have the highest rates of victimization for both personal and household crimes. The Northeast retained the lowest rate for both personal and household crimes. Approximately 36 percent of all crimes measure by the National Crime Survey were reported to the police. This proportion is consistent with the level recorded throughout the 1980's but is higher than when the survey began in 1973. 9 tables.