The U.S. Census Bureau has released the 2019 American Community Survey 5-year Estimates. This important release contains data for all geographies in the state.

Please see the link below for my notes on this release.

• Notes_on_the_2019_ACS_5-year_Estimates.pdf

Notes on the 2019 ACS 5-Year Estimates Eric A. Guthrie, State Demographer December 10, 2020 Today, the U.S. Census Bureau released the 2019 American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates. The ACS samples about one percent of households in the United States annually and asks questions about individual and household characteristics. Unlike the 1-year estimates, which only have information for areas with at least 65,000 residents, the 5-year estimates have data for all geographies. The U.S. Census Bureau is able to make estimates at small levels of geography because they pool the data from the 1-year estimates to produce the 5-year estimates. Although the 5-year estimates are available for smaller populations, users should understand that these data represent a period estimate covering a five-year time-span. These estimates are not as current, however, pooling five years of data allows for improved precision of estimates and the possibility of more frequent small area data than was available prior to the ACS.

The release of the 2019 5-year estimates represents the first opportunity for geographies to have three non-overlapping periods that can be compared with ACS data. Currently, areas can be compared with the 2009, 2014, and the new 2019 estimates, which cover 2005 to 2009, 2010 to 2014, and 2015 to 2019, respectively.

Housing Occupancy and Tenure

This new data release contains information on housing occupancy and tenure throughout Michigan. These data are important as they are needed to guide the development of Michigan communities and to show what types of housing might be needed.

When planners are making decisions, data on housing occupancy and tenure are vital to understanding current and future needs. In Census data, the term occupancy is fairly straightforward and refers to the distinction about whether a unit is occupied or vacant. Figure 1 shows occupancy across the state by census tract. Readily observable is the difference between occupancy in the northern versus Figure 1. Percent Occupied Housing Units by Census Tract southern parts of the state. The southern part of the state has much higher occupancy rates, and because occupancy is a dichotomous variable, i.e., occupied or vacant, it can be observed that the northern part of the state has relatively high vacancy as well.

Beyond the units’ occupancy status, housing tenure is also important. Tenure refers to the basic economic arrangements under which a housing unit is occupied. This means that housing tenure is a characteristic of occupied housing units, and its most basic distinction is whether a housing unit is owner or renter occupied. Tenure is often where people mistakenly go to try to find an explanation for questions like why there is a difference in occupancy between the northern and southern parts of the state. Figure 2 shows the percent of housing units that are renter occupied. The proportion of renter occupied housing is higher in urban centers, but beyond those areas, renter occupied housing units are spread fairly evenly across the state. Owner occupied units have a similar distribution though on the high end of the scale.

The real answer to the question about the differences between the occupancy in the northern and southern parts of the state is actually found in the part of the occupancy data that talks about the characteristics of vacant units. Figure 3 looks at the distribution of vacant units that are described as being for “seasonal, recreational, Figure 2. Percent Renter Occupied Housing Units by Census Tract Figure 3. Percent Vacant Housing Units that are for Seasonal, Recreational, or Occasional use or occasional use.” When comparing Figures 1 and 3, it becomes apparent that many of the housing units listed as vacant in the data are not actually “available” for sale or rental. This is backed up by the data in Figure 4, which combines the data for vacant units that are listed as either “for sale” or “for rent.” The largest proportion of available housing is in the same part of the state that was revealed to have the highest occupancy in Figure 1.

It would be difficult to overstate the importance of these data for planning purposes. As population change in Michigan will be ever more dependent on migration, it is vital that the available housing stock is appropriate to anticipated and desired population increases or declines. A mismatch between potential migrants and available housing will result in a variety of negative social and economic outcomes.

Further Information All data presented here—in addition to a wealth of other socioeconomic, demographic, and housing information—are available from the Census Bureau website, www.census.gov. As always, we are here to assist you with your demographic data needs. I can be reached at guthriee@michigan.gov or 517-241-8667.