Information on new HUD data tool

February 24, 2010

Author: Michael Hanley

HUD PROVIDING ONLINE ACCESS TO EXTENSIVE HOUSING PROGRAM DEMOGRAPHICS

HUD’s Office of Policy Development and Research (PD&R) recently enhanced its “Picture of Subsidized Households” online database to make readily available to the public detailed demographic information about both its project-based and its tenant-based housing programs.  The online database includes a relatively user-friendly search engine and an online report generator that makes it possible to narrow your data requests by the type of housing program or by geographic area.  In addition, the database provides limited information on the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program (even though that is not a HUD program).  The new “2008 Picture of Subsidized Households” is available at: 
http://www.huduser.org/portal/picture2008/index.html

For researchers and mappers these improvements are significant.  For each of the project-based housing developments, HUD now provides the geo-codes to map the project locations. And, for the tenant-based “Housing Choice Voucher” program, HUD has for the first time provided census tract data with the percentage of voucher holders in each of data category.  Since they also include the total number of voucher holders in the tract, you can readily calculate the numbers of minority and non-minority voucher households in each tract and to compare where minority and non-minority voucher households use their subsidies.

Until this update the most detailed data in the “Picture of Subsidized Households” was over a decade old.  And, while the format itself was enticing, much of the data was actually missing or incomplete.  It looks like HUD has now remedied much of those shortcomings.  The current database is compiled from the 2008 individual household reports that were completed by program participants when they applied for or recertified for housing assistance.  The data itself comes directly from the HUD’s required “Family Report Form” (HUD 50058 or 50059).  Confidentiality is assured to the households, however, because only aggregate data for a particular housing development or for a specific census tract is provided.  If a tract includes ten or fewer assisted households, the data is withheld.

The available data for each housing development (or for each census tract in the case of the Housing Choice Voucher program) are:

• Household Size and Composition
• Amount and Source of income
• Age and Disability Status
• Race and Ethnicity
• Poverty Status

For comparison purposes, the database also includes percentage of minority concentration and the poverty concentration (from the 2000 Census) for the tract in which a particular housing development is located.

Highlights:

Voucher Program – Probably the most valuable use of the 2008 Picture of Subsidized Household update is for  mapping tract level totals for each category of voucher holders.  It is possible, for example, to compare whether racial minorities or Hispanics are using their subsidies in different areas than White, non-Hispanic households.   So, too, for persons with disabilities, or for very-low income households compared to higher income Voucher households.  “Dot –cluster” or “pie chart” maps paint a revealing picture. 

Public Housing – The data for each housing authority and is presented by individual housing development, rather than just the total for the entire Public Housing Authority.  This allows researchers to determine the extent to which segregation may exist within a particular housing authority and to a compare a particular development to the overall tract or area characteristics.  Note, though, that the “Picture” data is most useful for simply supplying the geo-codes, since you can actually get more recent demographic data through HUD’s separate, and recently improved, “Residents Characteristics Report System.”  (RCRS now provides development level PHA demographics which are updated on a monthly basis.  See: https://pic.hud.gov/pic/RCRPublic/rcrmain.asp; but be sure to search by “Project”).

Individual developments – Geo-coding makes it possible to see the relationship of the housing development locations to overall race and poverty concentrations for individual public housing developments,  for privately owned HUD assisted multi-family housing developments, and for the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit  (LIHTC) developments.  Although race and ethnicity data is not available for the LIHTC program, for the HUD programs you can compare the housing development’s actual race, ethnicity and poverty demographics to that of the surrounding areas.  Also, HUD maintains a separate user-friendly online reporting program for the LIHTC program at: http://lihtc.huduser.org/.  Although that program does not provide data on resident characteristics, it does provide highly detailed data on the financing and income targeting for each development as well as the geo-codes.

Watch for a more detailed article, with sample maps, on the Empire Justice Website.  In the meantime, if you have questions or comments on ways to use the new HUD data, contact Michael Hanley.