VT Census Case Studies : MPF Research

Created and last modified by molfe on 02 Jan 2016

Brief Overall Description of the Dataset:

“MPF Research assesses recent general condition in the apartment market and forecast market fundamentals for the coming year.” The data is used to calculate economic trends, to note supply and demand of apartments, record occupancy, rent and revenue rates, and locate product niches. There is data available for every state, though not covering the entire state, only one to three of the largest markets in the state. The data available for purchase is in report form, with the ability to buy in the United States, and individually at state level, and in different markets in each state. In the individual level you can purchase either a full year, or an individual quarter.

Link: http://www.realpage.com/mpf-research/methodology/

Date Inventory Completed: 5/28/2015

Screening

  • Is the data collected opinion-based?
  • Is the data collection recurring?
  • Is there data available for 2013?
  • For Housing: Is the data collected at the property or housing unit level? 
  • Can we access the data by August 15th?

Purpose

  • What is the purpose of the organization collecting the data?

To catalog, analyze and forecast for the current apartment market.

  • Why is it collected and how does the organization use it?

This data is collected in order to understand and forecast the apartment and commercial real estate market. The organization uses it understand the housing market in urban areas, especially as single occupancy households are growing in popularity.

  • Who else uses the data?

Businesses, researchers

  • Who do they sell the data to?

Anyone

 

Method

  • What is the data collection method? 

Data is collected through a quarterly survey. Where available, data from RealPage software products is used. But, data is also collected through telephone surveys and email surveys with apartment community owners and managers. Data is also collected for each property’s individual floor plans, not by general floor plan. Some supplementary data is from the U.S. Census Bureau and Bureau of Labor Statistics.

  • What is the type of data collected? 

Designed collection, administrative

  • If designed, who created the questions?

MPF Researchers

  • What is the raw source of the collected data (prior to any aggregation)? 

Survey reports from apartment owners and managers


Description

  • What is the general topic of the data (1-2 words)?

Commercial properties (apartments)

  • What are the earliest and latest dates for which data is available?

2013-2015

  • Is data collected and available periodically?

Yes, quarterly (year)

  • How soon after a reference period ends can a data source be prepared and provided? 

Unsure the exact period, but but not long after the quarter is complete.


Selectivity

  • What is the universe (e.g., population) that the data represents?

Attached dwellings with five or more units leased through central management, traditional and multi family unit apartment communities


Accessibility

  • How is the data accessed? 

  • Is it open data?

No

  • Any legal, regulatory, or administrative restrictions on accessing the data source?

None listed

  • Cost? - One time or annual or project based payment?

Annual subscriptions to reports (rather than quarterly)

 $32,500.00- all of the United States

 $1850- Virginia Beach

 $750- Richmond

$1850- Washington, DC

Does this dataset appear to meet our needs for the Census study? YES

Explanation:

This data set passes all of the credentials and brings a unique dataset focusing on the apartment market which is typically only addressed by building rather than individual units.

Full Inventory

Description

  • What is the general contents of the data source (brief list of the type of variables included)? 

Demographics, walkability, rent

  • Features

    • What is the temporal nature of the data

Time-series

    • Geospatial? If Yes, at what level?

Yes, zip codes

  • What is the scope of the records? 

Large metropolitan markets in the United States http://www.realpage.com/mpf-research/select-market/


Metadata

  • Is there information available to assess the transparency and soundness of the methods to gather the data for our purposes (i.e., supplementing the census)?

No

  • Is there a description of each variable in the source along with their valid values?

No

  • Are there unique IDs for unique elements that can be used for linking data?

No

  • Is there a data dictionary or codebook? If so, put the link here and add to folder.

No


Selectivity 

  • What unit is represented at the record level of the data source?

Household

  • Does this universe match the stated intentions for the data collection? If not, what has been included or excluded and why?

Unknown

  • What is the sampling technique used (if applicable)?

Unknown

  • What was the coverage? 

 Unknown


Stability/Coherence

  • Were there any changes to the universe of data being captured (including geographical areas covered) and if so what were they? 

No

  • Were there any changes in the data capture method and if so what were they? (

No

  • Were there any changes in the sources of data and if so what were they?

No


Accuracy

  • Any known sources of error?

None listed

  • Describe any quality control checks performed by the data’s owner.

 None listed


Accessibility

  • Any records or fields collected, but not included in data source, such as for confidentiality reasons)? 

None listed

  • Is there a subset of variables and/or data that is must be obtained through a separate process? If yes, is there a separate legal, regulatory, or administrative restrictions on accessing the data source?  Cost? - One time or annual or project based payment? 

No


Privacy and security

  • Was consent given by participant? If so, how was consent given? 

Yes, by responding to the survey, other forms of consent are not listed

  • Are there legal limitations or restrictions on the use of the data? 

None listed

  • What confidentiality policies does the source have? 

None listed


Research

  • What research has been done with this dataset?

It has been used for market trends in apartment heavy markets

  • Include any links to research if provided:  

http://www.realpage.com/mpf-research/about/news/

  • List any other data use notes provided by the supplier.

N/A


Gaps/Concerns

  • Feasibility - can all jurisdiction levels provide the data (if applicable)?

  • Data ownership - a lack of clarity in legal guidance stemming from a lack of clarity with who owns digital data

  • Data collection authority - what data is reasonably private and what constitutes unwarranted intrusion?

  • Describe any other notes you have or any gaps/concerns you see with this dataset:

This dataset presents multiple issues, one being that on a full scale the data gets costly, quickly, especially that what is being delivered is only a report, not the raw data. Second, the dataset is focused on very localized areas and would need to be expanded to cover a wider range of the country.