Inman

New HUD site combines real estate, economics data

A new Web portal combines local, regional and statewide housing and economic data from a variety of government sources, officials at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Department announced today.

The "Regional Economic and Market Analysis" site, at HudUser.org/portal/regional.html, features U.S. Census Bureau, Labor Department, and HUD data, along with information from state and local governments and housing industry sources, according to the announcement.

Raphael Bostic, HUD’s assistant secretary for policy development and research, said the site offers the public a "look at their local economic and housing markets," adding that the site is intended to assist "state and local leaders, developers, the real estate industry and the general public who need the latest available data on their markets."

Bostic formerly served as the founding director of the Casden Real Estate Economics Forecast at University of Southern California.

The HUD site offers an interactive map of the U.S., divided into major regions. Users can drill down to county-level data.

Among the offers at the site:

1. Market at a Glance reports: Economic and housing market data trends for county and metro areas, with monthly employment data.

2. Regional housing market profiles: Employment, population and construction data.

3. Regional narratives: Economic and housing market trends within 10 U.S. regions.

4. Comprehensive housing market analysis: Metro-specific housing market reports prepared by HUD field economists.