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Location Affordability Index v 2.0

Published by Office of Policy Development and Research, GIS Helpdesk and Open Data Division | Department of Housing and Urban Development | Catalog Last Checked: September 30, 2026 at 03:13 PM | Dataset Last Updated: July 31, 2023 at 03:42 PM
The Location Affordability Index (LAI) helps to better understand the combined cost of housing and transportation. First launched by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and Department of Transportation (DOT) in November 2013, the LAI provides ubiquitous, standardized household housing and transportation cost estimates at the Census block-group level for the majority of the populated area of the United States. Because what is affordable is different for everyone, users can choose among eight household profiles—which vary by household income, size, and number of commuters—and see the impact of the built environment on affordability in a given neighborhood location while holding household demographics constant. First launched by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and Department of Transportation (DOT) in November 2013, the Location Affordability Index (LAI) provides ubiquitous, standardized household housing and transportation cost estimates at the Census block-group level for the majority of the populated area of the United States. Because what is affordable is different for everyone, users can choose among eight household profiles—which vary by household income, size, and number of commuters—and see the impact of the built environment on affordability in a given neighborhood location while holding household demographics constant. In Version 1, these estimates were originally generated with data from several federal sources and vehicle miles traveled (VMT) data from Illinois EPA using separate OLS regression models for household housing costs, VMT, car ownership, and transit usage. Version 2, in addition to updating all the constituent data sources, represents a significant a methodological and technical advance from Version 1, modelling auto ownership, housing costs, and transit usage for both homeowners and renters are concurrently using simultaneous equation modeling (SEM) to capture the interrelationship of these factors. The inputs to the SEM include these six endogenous variables and 18 exogenous variables, with VMT still modeled separately due to data limitations. To learn more about the Location Affordability Index (v.2.0) visit: https://www.hudexchange.info/programs/location-affordability-index/, for questions about the spatial attribution of this dataset, please reach out to us at GISHelpdesk@hud.gov. Data Dictionary: DD_Location Affordability Indev v.2.0 Date of Coverage: 2008-2012

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Complete Metadata
@type Dataset
accessRights Public
accrualPeriodicity annually
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[
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description The Location Affordability Index (LAI) helps to better understand the combined cost of housing and transportation. First launched by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and Department of Transportation (DOT) in November 2013, the LAI provides ubiquitous, standardized household housing and transportation cost estimates at the Census block-group level for the majority of the populated area of the United States. Because what is affordable is different for everyone, users can choose among eight household profiles—which vary by household income, size, and number of commuters—and see the impact of the built environment on affordability in a given neighborhood location while holding household demographics constant. First launched by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and Department of Transportation (DOT) in November 2013, the Location Affordability Index (LAI) provides ubiquitous, standardized household housing and transportation cost estimates at the Census block-group level for the majority of the populated area of the United States. Because what is affordable is different for everyone, users can choose among eight household profiles—which vary by household income, size, and number of commuters—and see the impact of the built environment on affordability in a given neighborhood location while holding household demographics constant. In Version 1, these estimates were originally generated with data from several federal sources and vehicle miles traveled (VMT) data from Illinois EPA using separate OLS regression models for household housing costs, VMT, car ownership, and transit usage. Version 2, in addition to updating all the constituent data sources, represents a significant a methodological and technical advance from Version 1, modelling auto ownership, housing costs, and transit usage for both homeowners and renters are concurrently using simultaneous equation modeling (SEM) to capture the interrelationship of these factors. The inputs to the SEM include these six endogenous variables and 18 exogenous variables, with VMT still modeled separately due to data limitations. To learn more about the Location Affordability Index (v.2.0) visit: https://www.hudexchange.info/programs/location-affordability-index/, for questions about the spatial attribution of this dataset, please reach out to us at GISHelpdesk@hud.gov. Data Dictionary: DD_Location Affordability Indev v.2.0 Date of Coverage: 2008-2012
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identifier https://www.arcgis.com/home/item.html?id=c1c32742599a42c9a45c95be50ed2ab6
issued 2023-07-31
keyword 
[
  "Boundaries",
  "CPD",
  "Community Planning and Development",
  "DOT",
  "Economy",
  "Governmental Units",
  "HUD",
  "LAI",
  "Location",
  "Location Affordability",
  "Society",
  "US Department of Housing and Urban Development",
  "US Department of Transportation",
  "and Administrative and Statistical Boundaries",
  "hud.official.content"
]
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modified 2023-07-31T15:42:29.487Z
programCode 
[
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publisher 
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  "@type": "org:Organization",
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}
rights 
[
  "HUD and the dataset and metadata authors assume no responsibility for the use or misuse of the dataset. No warranty, expressed or implied is made with regard to the accuracy of the spatial accuracy, and no liability is assumed by the U.S. Government in general, the dataset creators or the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development specifically, as to the spatial or attribute accuracy of the data."
]
spatial 
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  "@type": "Location",
  "prefLabel": "United States and Minor Outlying Islands"
}
title Location Affordability Index v 2.0

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