Housing and Construction Data from
the Census Bureau
McCormick SRI: Going Deep with Census Demographic
and Economic Data
Dr. Arthur R Cresce
Assistant Division Chief for Housing Characteristics
U.S. Census Bureau
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Goals of Presentation
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Key sources of housing data we produce
Kinds of data these sources produce
Strengths and limitations of these sources
Some ideas for stories
How to access these data
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Key Points to Keep in Mind Using Census Data
Tradeoffs among:
• Geographic detail
• Characteristic detail
• Frequency of data collection
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Key Sources of Housing Data
• American Housing Survey
• 2010 Census and the American Community
Survey
• “Other” sources of data on housing
characteristics
• Construction Statistics Program
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About the American Housing Survey
(AHS)
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Inception of the AHS
• A 1968 Presidential Commission on Housing
found that there was not enough information on
the dynamics and condition of the housing stock,
especially between censuses
• In 1971 Congress authorized the AHS
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1973 - first National AHS
- 1974 - first Metro AHS
• Sponsored by the Department of Housing and
Urban Development (HUD)
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AHS Today
• National survey currently conducted every
two years
• Largest regular national housing survey in the
United States
- National sample - about 50,000 households with
new construction added each survey year
• Selected metropolitan areas surveyed every 4
to 6 years - almost 50 metro in sample at
some time over last 30 years
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Neighborhood quality,
Neighborhood problems,
Crime, Litter, Pollution,
Internal and External Building
Condition
Household education, income
and race/ethnicity
Just some subject areas
Mortgage financing,
Rent controls &
Rent subsidies
Utilities and energy usage
The homes people left, and
why they moved here
Inventory composition,
Units in structure,
Square footage
Residential alterations and
home repairs
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Another Unique Feature of the AHS
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The AHS has had the same panel in sample
since 1985.
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This allows researchers to track the same
housing unit over an almost 30 year span.
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Housing Characteristics in the
American Community Survey (ACS)
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Type of unit
Tenure (own or rent)
Age of structure
Number of rooms
Housing Value
Taxes & Insurance
Utilities
Mortgage/Monthly Rent
Etc.
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Housing Characteristics in Census 2010
• Occupancy Status
• Vacancy Status
• Housing tenure (rented,
owned)
14:27
Strengths and Limitations: 2010-ACS-AHS
Census 2010
ACS
AHS
Minimal housing
characteristics – totals,
occupancy status, housing
tenure, vacancy status
Basic housing characteristics
covering a range of housing
topics
Very detailed housing
characteristics, including
characteristics of
neighborhood
Very detailed geography –
down to the block level
1-year - areas 65K or more
3-year - areas of 20K or more
5-year – down to block group
National, regional, and some
metro areas
Counts and characteristics
obtained at one point in
time
Surveys units over a 12month period
Survey provides information
for a point in time and also
longitudinally
Data collected and released
once every 10 years
Data collected and released
every year
Data collected and released
every 2 years (national) and
4-6 years (specific metros)
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“Other” Sources of Housing Data
• Housing Vacancy Survey (Current Population
Survey)
• Survey of Market Absorption (SOMA)
• New York City Housing and Vacancy Survey
• Rental Housing Finance Survey
• Survey of Income and Program Participation
• Population Division Estimates Program
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Ideas for News Stories
About Housing Data
• Availability and affordability of housing
• Quality of housing and neighborhoods
• Characteristics of the home and how it may be
changing over time
• Amenities in the home and in the community
• Types of mortgages used to finance homes
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2008 ACS – Single Year Data – National Level
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2009 ACS – Single Year Data – National Level
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The Census Bureau’s
Manufacturing and Construction Division
Produces a Variety of Statistics
on Residential Construction
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Residential building permits
Housing starts and completions
New home sales
Characteristics of new housing
Construction spending
Manufactured home placements
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Two Surveys are Used to Measure New
Residential Construction and Sales
• Building Permits Survey (BPS)
 Voluntary monthly and annual mail surveys of the 20,000 local
permit-issuing jurisdictions in the U.S. (Internet reporting available this summer)
 Tracks the number of new privately-owned structures authorized
by building or zoning permits
• Survey of Construction (SOC)
 Voluntary monthly telephone/personal interview survey of
builders/owners of selected buildings (about 1 in 50 new units are sampled)
Provides data on housing starts, housing completions, new home sales,
prices, and characteristics of new housing units
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New Residential Construction
• Monthly Principal Economic Indicator Release
• Data for All Units and Single-family Units
• Usually released on the 12th working day of the month
at 8:30am ET
• Available at www.census.gov/starts
•Monthly seasonally adjusted data on Permits,
Starts, Completions, and Units under Construction
• Annual revisions with April release each May
• Historic data available
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New Residential Construction Strengths (Building Permits)
• Are a component of the Conference Board’s U.S.
Leading Economic Index, and are a leading
construction indicator
• Are public records and provide timely local data:
 Data are released on the 18th workday of the
following month for States, Metro Areas,
counties, and local jurisdictions
 Have a large monthly sample, and annual data
for all 20,000 jurisdictions are released each
year on May 1st
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New Residential Construction Strengths (Survey of Construction)
• Includes areas where permits are not required
• Response rates are high because field enumerators
collect data by observation
• Provides detailed annual data on characteristics of
new housing – released each year on June 1st
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New Residential Construction –
Limitations
• Data other than permits are available only for the 4 Census
Regions
• Confidence intervals for data other than permits are very
large due to the small SOC sample size
• Estimates for multifamily units often show large month-tomonth fluctuations because all units in the building are
counted together:
 as authorized when the permit is issued
 as started when excavation begins for the foundation
 as completed when half are ready for occupancy
• Single-family houses are considered completed when the
finished flooring has been installed
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New Residential Sales
• Monthly Principal Economic Indicator Release
• Commonly called “New Home Sales”
• Usually released on the 17th working day of the
month at 10:00am ET
• Available at www.census.gov/newhomesales
• Monthly seasonally adjusted data on New Houses
Sold and For Sale
• Median and Average Sales Prices of New Houses Sold
• Annual revisions with April release each May
• Data available back to 1963
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New Residential Sales Strengths
• Only source of national data on sales of new homes
• Based on contract signings, not closings, to provide a
leading indicator
 Data on sales of existing homes, from the National
Association of Realtors (www.realtor.org) are not
directly comparable because they measure closings
• Response rates are high because field enumerators collect
data by observation if the respondent does not participate
• Price indexes of new houses sold and under construction
measure inflation in home prices
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New Residential Sales –
Limitations
• Data available only for the 4 Census Regions
• Confidence intervals are very large due to the small SOC
sample size
• Includes only homes where the house and land are sold
as a package
• Includes only single-family homes and townhouses, not
condominium units
• Does not capture sales cancellations
• Larger revisions due to high initial imputation for houses
where contracts are signed before thepermit is issued
and sampled
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Many Sources are Used to Measure
Total Construction Spending
• Construction Progress Reporting Surveys (CPRS)
 Mail surveys of owners of sampled construction projects
 Data collected on:
 Privately-owned nonresidential construction projects
 Privately-owned multifamily residential buildings
 State and local construction projects (highways, schools, etc.)
 Federal construction projects (military bases, public housing, etc.)
• Examples of Other Sources of Data:
 Data for new single-family housing are derived from the SOC
 Data on residential remodeling are collected in the
Census Bureau’s Consumer Expenditures Survey
 Data on railroad construction are provided by the Surface Transportation Board
 Data on cable television construction are from industry trade association
statistics
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Construction Spending
• Monthly Principal Economic Indicator Release
• Commonly called “Value of Construction Put in Place (VIP)”
• Usually released on the 1st working day of the month
at 10:00am ET
• Available at www.census.gov/constructionspending
• Data available by type of construction
• Monthly seasonally adjusted data available
•Annual revisions with May release each July
• Data available back to 1964
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Construction SpendingStrengths
• Estimates the total amount of money spent on
allconstruction in the United States
• Feeds directly into the Gross Domestic Product (GDP)
• Total dollar value of all construction work:
 Residential and nonresidential
 Buildings and non-building projects
Privately-financed construction
Publicly-financed construction (Federal, state and local)
 New construction
 Improvements, additions, and alterations
• Includes work in progress – not just completed projects
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Construction Spending–
Limitations
• Data available for the U.S. total only
• Series for some types of construction have breaks when
new classifications were introduced in 1993
• Monthly data on residential remodeling are forecast
because the Consumer Expenditure Survey is quarterly, and
are subject to larger revisions than other series
• Remodeling data include only owner-occupied properties
and exclude remodeling funded by insurance claims
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Manufactured Home Placements
The Manufactured Housing Survey (MHS) collects data on new
manufactured (mobile) homes, which are not included in the
other construction data series:
• Measures the number of manufactured homes placed on sites for
residential use and in dealers’ inventories
• Includes homes inspected at the factory by the Department of Housing
and Urban Development (“HUD-code homes”)
• A monthly voluntary phone survey of individual units shipped to
dealers sampled from the factory inspection reports
• Gathers data on prices and characteristics
• Data available for the U.S. and the 4 Census Regions
• Monthly data available seasonally adjusted
• Available at www.census.gov/const/www/mhsindex.html
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Ideas for News Stories
About Construction Data
• News stories tend to overstate the significance ofthe change
in the latest monthly estimate, which is often not
statistically significant
 A better story would look at trends over several months
• The press may overstate the impact of weather on the
numbers; bad weather rarely affects an entire region
 Use local building permit data to provide a local angle
• The impact of government stimulus programs or budget
cuts can be seen in data on public construction spending
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For More Details on
Census Bureau Housing and
Construction Data:
Census Bureau Public Information Office
301-763-3030
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