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Helpful new AHS data resources now available!

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HUD and Census have added three new help guides and a technical white paper to the American Housing Survey (AHS) website! These new resources provide documentation and information to make it easier for you to work with the AHS data.

New White Paper—Imputation of Public Sewer Use in the 2017 American Housing Survey

Imputation of Public Sewer Use in the 2017 American Housing Survey describes the new model-based imputation methodology HUD and Census introduced in the 2017 AHS to address missing public sewer use values and ensure more accurate estimates on the public use files. With this new model—the stochastic regression imputation approach—we can reliably and accurately impute public sewer data and avoid the biases that can occur in other forms of imputation. The white paper helps data users understand the new approach and describes the key advantages over traditional approaches such as hot decks and regression imputation.

New Guide to Using the Sample Case History: 2015 and Beyond

Although the AHS national sample visits the same housing units each cycle, units may be removed or added throughout the survey process. The Sample Case History File (also known as the "Where Did They Go" file) allows users to track every unique case that was interviewed, beginning in 2015, in each longitudinal panel, and find basic information on the interview status. The new Guide to Using the Sample Case History File: 2015 and Beyond walks users through the file, offering a helpful overview of the way interviews are classified and the variables that are included as well as a detailed data dictionary.

New Metropolitan Area Oversample Histories: 2015 and Beyond Help Guide

Metropolitan Area Oversample Histories: 2015 and Beyond provides useful information on the AHS metropolitan area oversamples that were used in 2015 and later years—including when metropolitan areas were surveyed, which metropolitan area oversamples were longitudinal, and what geographic definition was used to define the metropolitan area. You'll find details on a total of 35 metropolitan area longitudinal oversamples, including:

  • The 15 largest metropolitan areas oversamples, which are integrated into the national longitudinal sample and are surveyed every two years.

  • The first 10 of the "Next 20" group of metropolitan area longitudinal oversamples, which were surveyed in 2015 and will be surveyed every four years after that (2019, 2023, etc.).

  • The second 10 of the "Next 20" group of metropolitan area longitudinal oversamples, which were surveyed in 2017 and will be surveyed every four years after that (2021, 2025, etc.).

New Help Guide—Public Use File Geography: 2015 and Beyond

You'll find detailed information about the geographic indicators in the AHS public use files in 2015 and later years in the new guide, American Housing Survey Public Use File Geography: 2015 and Beyond. Because of Census disclosure avoidance procedures, the 2015 and later PUFs do not include many of the geographic indicators included in prior year PUFs. This guide provides useful information on the two geographic variables in the National PUFs—Census Division and OMB13CBSA and the one variable in the Metropolitan Area PUFs—OMB13CBSA.

Thank you for your continued interest in the American Housing Survey. The AHS team is committed to making it as easy as possible to access and use AHS data. We want to hear from you. If you have questions or suggestions, call us at 1-800-245-2691 or email us at helpdesk@huduser.gov.

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