Calculating County-Level Housing Choice Voucher Gaps: A Methodology

Shane Dabney
Florida State University

This article presents a methodology for calculating county-level housing choice voucher gaps, leveraging IPUMS-obtained 5-year American Community Survey (ACS) data. Using Florida as a case study, the approach builds on existing methodologies to offer a fine-grained calculation that can be readily adapted to other states, providing a more precise quantification of voucher needs. Such precision is essential for informing local, state, and federal housing policies and enhancing the accuracy of research relying on precise counts of voucher eligibility at the local level. The methodology utilizes custom Python algorithms to prepare the ACS data by imputing missing county values and accounting for relevant factors, such as multifamily households and incarcerated persons, in the final eligibility determination (Dabney, 2024). Applying this methodology to Florida reveals significantly wider voucher gaps than common national estimates suggest, indicating a more substantial discrepancy between the number of families in need and those currently receiving vouchers than previously recognized.