Housing Value Appreciation

.. U.S. housing prices rose nationwide in August, up 1.5% from the previous month, based on the FHFA Housing Price Index (HPI). Housing prices rose 8.0% from August 2019 to August 2020.

If you purchased a housing unit in 2019Q2 at $260,200 (the ACS 2019 median housing value), the value of the unit in 2020Q2 would be $271,000, an increase of 4.2%. A good deal in this era of low interest rates.

U.S. housing prices posted a strong increase in August .. the 1.5% increase is the largest one-month price increase observed since the start of the HPI measurement in 1991. This large month-over-month gain contributes to an already strong increase in prices over the summer. These price gains can be attributed to the historically low interest rates, rebounding housing demand and continued supply constraints.

The HPI has various limitations as a measure to assess the housing market. One important limitation is that it a measure in isolation; other related demographic-economic measures are not included. This is unlike the American Community Survey (ACS) estimates of the median housing value ($MHV), used as an annual, year-over-year measure of housing value appreciation.

Median Housing Value
The U.S. ACS 1-year estimate of median housing value ($MHV) increased from $229,700 in 2018 to $240,500 in 2019. The ACS 2020 estimate, which will be impacted by the pandemic, will not be available until September 2021. The ProximityOne 2020 estimate of $MHV is $270,500.

Click this API link to view a CSV-like file showing the 2019 median household income and median housing value by state. Join me in a Data Analytics Web Session (see below) to integrate these data into a map view like shown below. Add other data.

Patterns of Median Housing Value by State

– view developed using ProximityOne CV XE GIS
– click graphic for larger view

An advantage of using the ACS or ACS-like $MHV data is that this measure is synchronized with other related measures, like total population, total housing units, housing units by tenure and age built and so on. Though a popular measure to assess geographically comparable housing values, the $MHV has many limitations. A key limitation is that few survey responders really know the value of their home. Other limitations have to do with the definition itself and how the data are collected/developed. ACS $MHV measures value of only occupied housing units and excludes houses on 10 or more acres and housing units in multi-unit structures. See more. While there are other Federal sources of $MHV, it remains that the usabilty aspects of the ACS or ACS-like measures are second to none.

Learn more — Join me in the Situation & Outlook Web Sessions
Join me in a Situation & Outlook Web Session where we discuss topics relating to measuring and interpreting the where, what, when, how and how much demographic-economic change is occurring and it’s impact.

About the Author
— Warren Glimpse is former senior Census Bureau statistician responsible for national scope statistical programs and innovative data access and use operations. He is also the former associate director of the U.S. Office of Federal Statistical Policy and Standards for data access and use. He has more than 20 years of experience in the private sector developing data resources and tools for integration and analysis of geographic, demographic, economic and business data. Contact Warren. Join Warren on LinkedIn.

Tip of the Day – Examining Median Housing Value – 2020 Update

.. tip of the day .. a continuing weekly or more frequent tip on developing, integrating, accessing and using geographic, demographic, economic and statistical data. Join in .. tip of the day posts are added to the Data Analytics Blog on an irregular basis, normally weekly. Follow the blog to receive updates as they occur.

.. in this era of uncertainly, we ponder the risk and opportunity associated with changing housing value.  Median housing value by ZIP Code area is one metric of great interest to examine levels and change.  While only one measure useful to examine housing characteristics, it is part of a broader set of demographic-economic data that enable analysis of the housing infrastructure and change in a more wholistic manner. How is housing value trending at the neighborhood level in 2020 and beyond? See more about the Situation & Outlook.

.. 5 ways to access/analyze the most recent estimates of median housing value and other subject matter by ZIP Code area .. based on the American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates. See related Web section.

Option 1. View the data as a thematic pattern map
Option 1 is presented as Option 1A (using CV XE GIS) and Option 1B (using Visual Data Analytics VDA Mapserver). See more about GIS.

Option 1A. View $MHV as a thematic pattern map; using CV XE GIS:
— Median Housing Value by ZIP Code Area; Los Angeles Area
Click graphic for larger view with more detail.

Click graphic for larger view.
Use the Mapping ZIP Code Demographics resources to develop similar views anywhere in U.S.

Option 1B. View $MHV (ACS 2018) as a thematic pattern map; using VDA Mapserver:
— Median Housing Value by ZIP Code Area; Phoenix/Scottsdale, AZ area
Click graphic for larger view with more detail.

Click graphic for larger view. Expand window to full screen for best quality view. View features:
– profile of ZIP 85258 (blue crosshatch highlight) shown in Attributes panel at left
– values-colors shown in Legend panel at left
– transparency setting allows “see through” to view ground topology below.
Use VDA Mapserver: to develop similar views anywhere in U.S. using only a browser. Nothing to install.

Option 2. Use the interactive table:
– go to http://proximityone.com/zip18dp4.htm (5-year estimates)
– median housing value is item H089; see item list above interactive table.
– scroll left on the table until H089 appears in the header column.
– that column shows the 2018 ACS H089 estimate for for all ZIP codes.
– click column header to sort; click again to sort other direction.
– see usage notes below table.

Option 3. Use the API operation:
– develop file containing $MHV for all ZIP code areas in U.S.
– load into Excel, other software; link with other data.
– median housing value ($MHV) is item B25077_001E.
– click this link to get B25077_001E ($MHV) using the API tool.
– this API call retrieves U.S. national scope data.
– a new page displays showing a line/row for each ZIP code.
– median housing value appears on the left, then ZIP code.
– optionally save this file and import the data into a preferred program.
– more about API tools.
Extending option 3 … accessing race, origin and $MHV for each ZIP code …
click on these example APIs to access data for all ZIP codes
.. get extended subject matter for all ZIP codes
.. get extended subject matter for two selected ZIP codes (64112 and 65201)

Items used in these API calls:
.. B01003_001E – Total population
Age
.. B01001_011E — Male: 25 to 29 years (illustrating age cohort access)
.. B01001_035E — Female: 25 to 29 years (illustrating age cohort access)
Race/Origin
.. B02001_002E – White alone
.. B02001_003E – Black or African American alone
.. B02001_004E – American Indian and Alaska Native alone
.. B02001_005E – Asian alone
.. B02001_006E – Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone
.. B02001_007E – Some other race alone
.. B02001_008E – Two or more races
.. B03001_003E – Hispanic (of any race)
Income
.. B19013_001E – Median household income ($)
.. B19113_001E – Median family income ($)
Housing & Households
.. B25001_001E – Total housing units
.. B25002_002E – Occupied housing units (households)
.. B19001_017E — Households with household income $200,000 or more
.. B25003_002E — Owner Occupied housing units
.. B25075_023E — Housing units value $500,000 to $749,999
.. B25075_024E — Housing units with value $750,000 to $999,999
.. B25075_025E — Housing units with value $1,000,000 or more
.. B25002_003E – Vacant housing units
.. B25077_001E – Median housing value ($) – owner occupied units
.. B25064_001E – Median gross rent ($) – renter occupied units

View additional subject matter options.

Option 4. View the $MHV in context of other attributes for a ZIP code.
Using – ACS demographic-economic profiles. Example for ZIP 85258:
– General Demographics ACS 2018 .. ACS 2017
– Social Characteristics ACS 2018 .. ACS 2017
– Economic Characteristics ACS 2018 .. ACS 2017
– Housing Characteristics ACS 2018 .. ACS 2017 .. $MHV shown in this profile.

Option 5. View 5- and 10-mile circular area profile from ZIP center.
– profile for ZIP 80204 dynamically made using SiteReport tool.
– with SiteReport running, enter the ZIP code, radii and click Run.
– comparative analysis report is generated in HTML and Excel structure.
– Click this link to view resulting profile.
– from the profile, site 2 is 1.9 times the population of site 1.
– Site 1 $MHV is $296,998 compared to Site 2 $MHV $269,734.
– GIS view with integrated radius shown below.

This section is focused on median housing value and ZIP code areas. Many other subject matter items will be apparent when these methods are used. Optionally adjust above details to view different subject matter for ZIP codes.

Join me in a Data Analytics Lab session to discuss more details about accessing and using wide-ranging demographic-economic data and data analytics. Learn more about using these data for areas and applications of interest.

About the Author
— Warren Glimpse is former senior Census Bureau statistician responsible for innovative data access and use operations. He is also the former associate director of the U.S. Office of Federal Statistical Policy and Standards for data access and use. He has more than 20 years of experience in the private sector developing data resources and tools for integration and analysis of geographic, demographic, economic and business data. Contact Warren. Join Warren on LinkedIn.

America’s Cities: Examining Characteristics & Trends

… examining city/place demographic-economic characteristics .. of the approximate 29,323 U.S. cities/places, there are just 548 “large cities” .. those with population of 65,000 population or more.  A semi-arbitrary classification, these are cities/places that meet a size criteria for which American Community Survey (ACS) 1-year estimates are developed annually.  This results in the availability of extensive annual demographic-economic data that are much more current than available for all other cities/places (incorporated cities and CDPs).  Click this link to display a list of these cities/places that include 42 CDPs.  They comprise 2017 population of 119,342,501 of the total U.S. population 325,719,178 (36.6%).

Visual Analysis of City/Place Population Dynamics
Use the CV XE GIS software with city/place GIS project to examine characteristics of city/place population. The following view shows patterns of population percent change by city in the Charlotte, NC/SC metro area.

… view developed using the CV XE GIS software.
… click map for larger view and details including city name.

Access updated city/place for all 29,323 U.S. cities/places based on data from American Community Survey 5-year estimates (ACS2017).  Only here, for example, can you compare income characteristics and educational attainment, and much more, among all cities/places or peer groups .. or examine one/a few of interest to you.

Interactive Tables
Use interactive tables to view, rank, compare cities for any selected item; examine peer groups. Four pages/tables:
• General Demographics
• Social Characteristics
• Economic Characteristics
• Housing Characteristics
Related:
• City/Place GeoDemographics Main Section
• Annual City/Place Population Estimates & Trends
• Similar ACS tables: Census Tracts | ZIP Codes | State, Metro & County

Using API Tools to Access Trend Data; Build Data Files
An example: Examine Citizen Voting Age Population; 2014-2017 annually
Using API Tools to access ACS 2017 1 year estimates for all cities/places:
.. item D084 (CVAP: citizen voting age population) in the interactive table
.. click here to view list of places 65,000 population and over and CVAP
.. join us in the Data Analytics Web Sessions to learn more

Data Analytics Web Sessions
See these applications live/demoed. Run the applications on your own computer.
Join me in a Data Analytics Lab session to discuss more details about accessing and using wide-ranging demographic-economic data and data analytics. Learn more about using these data for areas and applications of interest.

About the Author
— Warren Glimpse is former senior Census Bureau statistician responsible for innovative data access and use operations. He is also the former associate director of the U.S. Office of Federal Statistical Policy and Standards for data access and use. He has more than 20 years of experience in the private sector developing data resources and tools for integration and analysis of geographic, demographic, economic and business data. Contact Warren. Join Warren on LinkedIn.

Block Group Demographic Data Analytics

.. use tools described here to access block group data from ACS 2016 (or ACS2017 in December 2018) using a no cost, menu driven tool accessing the data via API. Select from any of the summary statistic data. Save results as an Excel file or shapefile. Add the shapefile to a GIS project and create unlimited thematic pattern views. Add your own data. Join us in a Data Analytics Web session where use of the tool with the ACS 2017 data is reviewed.

See related Web section for more details.
– examine neighborhoods, market areas and sales territories.
– assess demographics of health service areas.
– create maps for visual/geospatial analysis of locations & demographics.

Illustration of Block Group Thematic Pattern Map – make for any area

– click graphic to view larger view
– pointer (top right) shows location of Amazon HQ2

Topics in this how-to guide (links open new sections/pages)
• 01 Objective Thematic Pattern Map View
• 02 Install the CV XE GIS software
• 03 Access/Download the Block Group Demographic-Economic Data
• 04 Download the State by Block Group Shapefile
• 05 Merge Extracted Data (from 03) into Shapefile (04)
• 06 Add Shapefile to the GIS Project; Set Intervals
• 07 Viewing Profile for Selected Block Group
• 08 BG Demographics Spreadsheet
• 09 Block Group Demographics GIS Project
• 10 Why Block Group Demographics are Important

Data Analytics Web Sessions
Join me in a Data Analytics Lab session to discuss more details about accessing and using wide-ranging demographic-economic data and data analytics. Learn more about using these data for areas and applications of interest.

About the Author
— Warren Glimpse is former senior Census Bureau statistician responsible for innovative data access and use operations. He is also the former associate director of the U.S. Office of Federal Statistical Policy and Standards for data access and use. He has more than 20 years of experience in the private sector developing data resources and tools for integration and analysis of geographic, demographic, economic and business data. Contact Warren. Join Warren on LinkedIn.

Location-Based Demographics Update

.. tools you can use to examine characteristics of addresses/locations .. many of us are interested in knowing attributes of addresses or locations. Often knowing address latitude-longitude is important so that the addresses can be viewed on a map .. see below.  Some might need to know what census block, or other geography, in which an address is located .. or what school district is an address located in.  Others need to know demographic-economic attributes of the neighborhood or area where an address is located.  These types of attributes can be obtained for addresses using the Location-Based Demographic (LBD) tools.  The LBD tool has just been made a part of the CV XE GIS software.  The LBD tool is available in all versions of CV XE GIS, including the no fee User Group version. See more about using the LBD tools to look-up and analyze address/location attributes.

Viewing Geocoded Addresses on a Map – automatically
The following view shows addresses geocoded using the LBD tool. Markers show addresses of 27 Trader Joe’s locations in the Los Angeles area. LBD automatically creates a shapefile that is added to your GIS project. The markers are labeled with population ages 18 and over in the corresponding census tract. Marker color/styles reflect different levels of median household income. A separate census tract layer shows patterns of economic prosperity.

Click graphic for larger view. Expand browser window. A mini profile is displayed showing demographic-economic attributes for the marker at pointer.

View the locations without the tract thematic pattern layer:

Make similar views for your addresses.

Get Started Using the LBD Tool
1 – join the User Group .. click here to join (no fee).
2 – run the installer to install on a Windows machine .. requires your userid.
3 – with CV XE GIS running, click Tools>Find Address/LBD
    enter an address .. a form appears showing characteristics of the address.
4 – see more about using the tools on the LDB page.

GeoStatistical Data Analytics Learning Sessions
We are developing a series of “GeoStatistical Data Analytics” (GSDA) Learning Sessions/modules. One of these is focused on using the LBD tools and methods in the broader context of data analytics. We plan to develop the GSDA models for self-guided use by analysts/practitioners as well as in the classroom setting with teacher/student materials. Upcoming blog posts will describe the program in more detail.

Data Analytics Web Sessions
Join me in a Data Analytics Web Session, every Tuesday, where we review access to and use of data, tools and methods relating to GeoStatistical Data Analytics Learning. We review current topical issues and data — and how you can access/use tools/data to meet your needs/interests.

About the Author
Warren Glimpse is former senior Census Bureau statistician responsible for innovative data access and use operations. He is also the former associate director of the U.S. Office of Federal Statistical Policy and Standards for data access and use. He has more than 20 years of experience in the private sector developing data resources and tools for integration and analysis of geographic, demographic, economic and business data. Contact Warren. Join Warren on LinkedIn.

Creating Custom Demographic Datasets with API Tools

.. develop national scale spreadsheet files with virtually no learning time .. easy-to-use API operations to create national scope demographic-economic datasets based on American Community Survey 2016 1-year estimates .. custom subject matter selections. See more detail in related web sections ACS2016 and ACS2016_API.

Benefits and utility … how to acquire a spreadsheet showing the population of all cities with population estimates based on the ACS 2016 1-year data? … or, housing units, median household income, median housing value, etc.? Variations of this need frequently arise — what is the list of largest California counties sorted on total population: What are the 25 metros having the highest median household income? Which 10 congressional districts have the highest poverty incidence? Which urban areas have the highest educational attainment?

Use simple API calls described below to get answers to these types of questions — and more.  Create files that can be used for recurring applications. An example …

Urban Areas with 2016 Population 65,000+ Population
… results from using the API downloaded data … the following graphic shows urban areas with 65,000 or more 2016 population; zoom-in to Texas. The full national scope GIS project is available as described below; examine U.S. or any region. The file used to develop this view was created using the results of the API call reviewed below (requires integration of those data into the urban areas shapefile). Click graphic for larger view; expand browser window. Larger view shows urban areas labeled with name and mini profile for Dallas UA showing all subject matter items downloaded (via API) as described below.

… View developed using CV XE GIS.
… See more about Urban Population & Urban Areas.

Access ACS 2016 1-Year Data Using API Tools
Here are the API links … use these API calls to access/download selected items for selected geographies. See more about using API tools. Click a link and receive a return page with CSV-like structured data. See usage notes below. As these are ACS 2016 1 year estimates; geographies are only available for areas 65,000+ population.
Click a link:
• All U.S. cities/places
• All U.S. counties
• All U.S. CBSAs
• All U.S. Urban Areas
• All 115th Congressional Districts
• All U.S. states
• U.S. only

The following data retrieval operations are by state. These are examples using Arizona (FIPS state code 04).
• All [within state] Elementary School Districts
• All [within state] Secondary School Districts
• All [within state] Unified School Districts

API Call Returned Data Usage Notes
Clicking the All U.S. cities/places link above generates a new page with content very much like a CSV file. Try it .. click an above link.

See the related ACS2016_API web section for more details.

Items Retrieved in the API Calls
The sample header record above shows the subject matter item listed at the left in the following set of items. Modify API call and use other subject matter items. See full array of subject matter – xlsx file.
.. B01003_001E – Total population
Age
.. B01001_011E — Male: 25 to 29 years (illustrating age cohort access)
.. B01001_035E — Female: 25 to 29 years (illustrating age cohort access)
Race/Origin
.. B02001_002E – White alone
.. B02001_003E – Black or African American alone
.. B02001_004E – American Indian and Alaska Native alone
.. B02001_005E – Asian alone
.. B02001_006E – Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone
.. B02001_007E – Some other race alone
.. B02001_008E – Two or more races
.. B03001_003E – Hispanic (of any race)
Income
.. B19013_001E – Median household income ($)
.. B19113_001E – Median family income ($)
Housing & Households
.. B25001_001E – Total housing units
.. B25002_002E – Occupied housing units (households)
.. B19001_017E — Households with household income $200,000 or more
.. B25003_002E — Owner Occupied housing units
.. B25075_025E — Housing units value $1,000,000 to $1,499,999
.. B25075_026E — Housing units with value $1,500,000 to $1,999,999
.. B25075_027E — Housing units with value $2,000,000 or more
.. B25002_003E – Vacant housing units
.. B25077_001E – Median housing value ($) – owner occupied units
.. B25064_001E – Median gross rent ($) – renter occupied units

The rightmost fields/columns in the rows/records contain the area name and geographic codes.

Using API Tools for Data Analytics
Join me in a Data Analytics Lab session to discuss more details about accessing and using wide-ranging demographic-economic data and data analytics. Learn more about using these data for areas and applications of interest.

About the Author
— Warren Glimpse is former senior Census Bureau statistician responsible for innovative data access and use operations. He is also the former associate director of the U.S. Office of Federal Statistical Policy and Standards for data access and use. He has more than 20 years of experience in the private sector developing data resources and tools for integration and analysis of geographic, demographic, economic and business data. Contact Warren. Join Warren on L

Creating & Using Location Shapefiles

.. GIS tools and methods to develop and update location shapefiles .. location shapefiles are essential to most GIS applications. Location shapefiles, or point shapefiles, enable viewing/analyzing locations on a map and attributes of these locations such store or customer ID, street address, city, date updated, value, ZIP code and wide-ranging attributes about the location. This section reviews tools and methods to develop and use location shapefiles. See more detail about topics covered in this section in the related Web page.

Viewing/Analyzing Store Locations in the Dallas, TX Area
The following graphic illustrates how store locations can be shown in context of other geography and associated demographic-economic attributes. This view shows store locations (red markers) in context of Dallas city (blue cross-hatch pattern) and broader metro area. Markers shown in this view are based on a location shapefile created using steps described below. The identify tool is used to click on a location and show attributes in a mini-profile.

.. view developed with ProximityOne CV XE GIS and related GIS project.

View the locations contextually with thematic patterns by tract or other geography. Combine views of store, customer, agent, competitor and other location shapefiles.
The following view shows patterns of median household income by census tract.

.. view developed with ProximityOne CV XE GIS and related GIS project.

Development of location shapefiles often starts with a list of addresses. Locations are not always address-oriented; they might be geographically dispersed measurement or transaction locations — having no address assigned. In applications reviewed here, locations are organized as rows in a CSV file. Each CSV file contains like-structured attributes for each location. The example used in this section uses store locations located in the Dallas, TX area.

There are two basic methods used to create location shapefiles: 1) geocoding address-data contained in the source data file or 2) using the latitude-longitude of the location included in the source data file record. The focus here is on option 2 — using the latitude-longitude of the location already present in the source data file.

Creating a Location Shapefile
The process of creating a location shapefile uses the CV XE GIS Manage Location Shapefile feature. With CV running, the process is started with File>Tools>ManageLocationShapefile. The following form appears.

.. ManageLocationShapefile feature/operation in ProximityOne CV XE GIS.

CV XE GIS provides other ways to create location shapefiles:
• Tools>AddShapes>Points — click points on the map window canvas.
• Tools>FindAddress — creates a single point shapefile based on specified address.
• Tools>FindAddress (Batch) — creates a point shapefile based on specified file of address records.
See details in User Guide.

Steps to Create a Location Shapefile
The process of creating the shapefile “C:\cvxe\1\locations1pts.shp” can be viewed by clicking the Run button on the form (with CV running). Two input CSV structured files are required:
• data definition file
• source data file

There are two sets of illustration location input files included with the CV installer:
• locations1_dd.csv and locations1.csv (7 locations in Johnson County, KS)
• locations2_dd.csv and locations2.csv (252 locations in Dallas and Houston)
These files are located in the \1 (typically c:\cvxe\1) folder. The marker/location shapefile used in the map shown above was created using the lcoations2 input files.

Data Definition File
The Data Definition (DD) file is an ASCII/text file structured as a CSV file. It may created with any text editor. The DD file is specific to the source data file. But in the case of recurring source data files for different periods the same DD file might apply to many source data files. There are several rules and guidelines for development of the DD file:
• there is one line/record for each field in the source data file.
• each line/record must be structured in an exact form:
.. each line/record is comprised of exactly 4 elements separated by a comma:
.. 1 field name for subject matter item
– must consist of 1 to 10 characters and include no blanks or special characters
.. 2 field type: C for character, N for numeric
.. 3 field length: an integer specifying the maximum with of the field
.. 4 maximum number of decimals for field (value is 0 for character fields)
The DD File must include three final fields:
LATITUDE,n,12,6
LONGITUDE,n,12,6
GEOID,c,15,0
The structure of these three DD file records must be as shown above. The source data file, described below, must have the LATITUDE and LONGITUDE fields populated with accurate values. The GEOID field may populated with either an accurate value of placeholder value like 0.

Example. Data for each store for the default DD file name “C:\cvxe\1\locations1_dd.csv” include the following fields/attributes:
  NAME,C,45,0
STORE,c,15,0
ADDRESS,c,60,0
CITY,c,40,0
LATITUDE,n,12,6
LONGITUDE,n,12,6
GEOID,c,15,0

Optionally create a DD File using the Create DD File button on the form. Clicking this button will create a DD File containing attributes of the dBase file specified in the associated edit box. The DD File name is created from the dBase file name. If the dBase file name is “c:\cvxe\1\locations1pts.dbf”, the DD File will be named “c:\cvxe\1\locations1pts_dd.csv”.

About the GEOID
The GEOID is a 15 character code which defines the Census 2010 census block containing each location. The GEOID is generally assigned by the ManageLocationShapefile operation and is one of the important and distinctive features of this tool. The GEOID is used to uniquely determine, with the GIS application, any of the following: state, county, census tract, block group, or census block.

The GEOID, as used in this section, is the 15 character Census 2010 geocode for the census block. The GEOID value 481130002011012 (see in location profile in map at top of section) is structured as:
state FIPS code: 48 (2 chars)
county FIPS code: 113 (3 chars)
census tract code 000201 (6 chars)
census block code: 1012 (4 chars) (block group code: 1 — first of 4 characters)

About the Source Data File
The Source Data File is an ASCII/text file structured as a CSV file. It is typically developed by exporting/saving an Excel or dBase file in CSV structure. There are several rules and guidelines for development of the source data file:
• fields must be structured and arranged as defined in the DD File.
• character fields must not contain embedded commas.
• final items in record sequence must be:
.. LATITUDE – must have accurate decimal degree value; 6 digit precision suggested.
.. LONGITUDE- must have accurate decimal degree value; 6 digit precision suggested.
.. GEOID – this may be 0, not assigned or the accurately assigned GEOID value.
– optionally create/rewrite the GEOID used in the new shapefile.

Updates; Combining Vintages of Location Attributes
Location based data might update frequently, even daily. The recommended method to add, update and extend the scope of location-based data is to create new address shapefiles corresponding to different vintages or dates covered. The structure of the files must be the same so that they files can be used together or separately. Suppose there is one set of data covering year to date and a second set of data covering the following month. The ManagePointShapefile operation would be run once for each time period. Two shapefiles would be created. These shapefiles may be added to a GIS project and used separately or in combination to view/analyze patterns.

Join me in a Data Analytics Lab session to discuss more details about accessing and using wide-ranging demographic-economic data and data analytics. Learn more about using these data for areas and applications of interest.

About the Author
— Warren Glimpse is former senior Census Bureau statistician responsible for innovative data access and use operations. He is also the former associate director of the U.S. Office of Federal Statistical Policy and Standards for data access and use. He has more than 20 years of experience in the private sector developing data resources and tools for integration and analysis of geographic, demographic, economic and business data. Contact Warren. Join Warren on LinkedIn.

Accessing & Using ZIP Code Demographics

.. tip of the day .. a continuing weekly or more frequent tip on developing, integrating, accessing and using geographic, demographic, economic and statistical data. Join in .. tip of the day posts are added to the Data Analytics Blog on an irregular basis, normally weekly. Follow the blog to receive updates as they occur.

… February 2017 updates .. 5 ways to access/analyze the most recent estimates of median housing value and other subject matter by ZIP Code area .. updates on accessing/downloading/using American Community Survey (ACS1115) 5-year estimates. See more detail in related Web section.

Site analysis (Option 5 below)
– create site analysis profiles from a location/ZIP code.

Contents
Five data access and use options, listed in the links below, are reviewed. Each method illustrates how ZIP code demographic-economic data can be accessed/ analyzed/used in different contexts. The most basic data access/data download is illustrated in Option 3. The following links open new windows that take you to the related section with more detail.
• Option 1 – View the data as a thematic pattern map.
• Option 2 – View, compare, rank query data in interactive tables.
• Option 3 – Access data using API Tools; create datasets.
.. Option 3a – Extended ZIP Code subject matter access.
.. Option 3b – ZIP code urban/rural data access.
.. Option 3c – Additional API ACS data access resources.
• Option 4 – View $MHI in structured profile in context of related data.
• Option 5 – Site analysis – view circular area profile from a location.

Related ZIP Code Data Access & Use sections
• Interactive access to demographics based on an address
• Summary of ZIP Code Data Resources & Tools
• 10 Reasons to use Census Tracts Versus ZIP Codes
• Analyzing Census Tract Demographics by ZIP Code Area
• ZIP Code to Census Tract Equivalence Table
• ZIP Code Urban/Rural Geography & Demographics
• Mapping ZIP Code Demograhics
• Housing Price Index by 5-digit ZIP Code – time series; annual updates
• Housing Price Index by 3-digit ZIP Code – time series; quarterly updates
• ZIP Code Business Establishment, Employment & Earnings by industry
• ZIP Code Retail Trade Establishment & Sales by industry
• ZIP Code Equivalence Tables — ZIP Code to School District

Join me in a Data Analytics Lab session to discuss more details about accessing and using wide-ranging demographic-economic data and data analytics. Learn more about using these data for areas and applications of interest.

About the Author
— Warren Glimpse is former senior Census Bureau statistician responsible for innovative data access and use operations. He is also the former associate director of the U.S. Office of Federal Statistical Policy and Standards for data access and use. He has more than 20 years of experience in the private sector developing data resources and tools for integration and analysis of geographic, demographic, economic and business data. Contact Warren. Join Warren on LinkedIn.

State and Regional Decision-Making Information

Organized on a state-by-state basis, use tools and geographic, demographic and economic data resources in these sections to facilitate planning and analysis. Updated frequently, these sections provide a unique means to access to multi-sourced data to develop insights into patterns, characteristics and trends on wide-ranging issues. Bookmark the related main Web page; keep up-to-date.

Using these Resources
Knowing “where we are” and “how things have changed” are key factors in knowing about the where, when and how of future change — and how that change might impact you. There are many sources of this knowledge. Often the required data do not knit together in an ideal manner. Key data are available for different types of geography, become available at different points in time and are often not the perfect subject matter. These sections provide access to relevant data and a means to consume the data more effectively than might otherwise be possible. Use these data, tools and resources in combination with other data to perform wide-ranging data analytics. See examples.

Select a State/Area

Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware D.C. Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas

Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina

North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming

Topics for each State — with drill-down to census block
• Visual pattern analysis tools … using GIS resources
• Digital Map Database
• Situation & Outlook
• Metropolitan Areas
• Congressional Districts
• Counties
• Cities/Places
• Census Tracts
• ZIP Code Areas
• K-12 Education, Schools & School Districts
• Block Groups
• Census Blocks

Join me in a Data Analytics Lab session to discuss more details about accessing and using wide-ranging demographic-economic data and data analytics. Learn more about using these data for areas and applications of interest.

About the Author
— Warren Glimpse is former senior Census Bureau statistician responsible for innovative data access and use operations. He is also the former associate director of the U.S. Office of Federal Statistical Policy and Standards for data access and use. He has more than 20 years of experience in the private sector developing data resources and tools for integration and analysis of geographic, demographic, economic and business data. Contact Warren. Join Warren on LinkedIn.

Tip of the Day — Census Tract Data Analytics

.. tip of the day .. a continuing weekly or more frequent tip on developing, integrating, accessing and using geographic, demographic, economic and statistical data. Join in .. tip of the day posts are added to the Data Analytics Blog on an irregular basis, normally weekly. Follow the blog to receive updates as they occur.

This section is focused on tools and methods to access and use census tract demographic-economic measures. Median household income ($MHI), median housing value ($MHV) and other selected items are used to illustrate operations and options.

This section illustrates use of census tract data from the 2014 American Community Survey (ACS1014) 5-year estimates. These are the most comprehensive demographic-economic data from the Census Bureau at the census tract level. These “5-year estimates” are centric to mid-2012. See more about 2010-2021 annual estimates and projections.

Methods described here apply to many other geographies; see related tip sections. See related section on ZIP code applications.

Five data access and use options are reviewed. Each method illustrates how $$MHI, $MHV and other data can be analyzed/used in different contexts.

• Option 1 – View the data as a thematic pattern map.
• Option 2 – View, compare, rank query data in interactive tables.
• Option 3 – Access data using API Tools; create datasets.
• Option 4 – View $MHI in structured profile in context of related data.
• Option 5 – Site analysis – view circular area profile from a location.

Related sections:
• Census tracts main section
• Evolution of Census Tracts: 1970-2010
• Demographic-Economic Estimates & Projections
• Census tract and ZIP code equivalencing
• Using census tracts versus ZIP code areas
• Single year of age demographics

Option 1. View the data as a thematic pattern map; use the GIS tools:
Patterns of Economic Prosperity ($MHI) by Census Tract … the following graphic shows $MHI for a portion of the Los Angeles metro. Accommodating different demographic-economic thresholds/patterns, different legend color/data intervals are used. The pattern layer is set to 80% transparency enabling a view of earth features. Click graphic for larger view, more detail and legend color/data intervals; expand browser window for best quality view.

– View developed using CV XE GIS and related GIS project.

See details about each option in the related Web page.

Join me in a Data Analytics Lab session to discuss more details about accessing and using wide-ranging demographic-economic data and data analytics. Learn more about using these data for areas and applications of interest.

About the Author
— Warren Glimpse is former senior Census Bureau statistician responsible for innovative data access and use operations. He is also the former associate director of the U.S. Office of Federal Statistical Policy and Standards for data access and use. He has more than 20 years of experience in the private sector developing data resources and tools for integration and analysis of geographic, demographic, economic and business data. Contact Warren. Join Warren on LinkedIn.