2001 Residential Financial Survey

The 2001 Residential Finance Survey (RFS) was sponsored by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and conducted by the Census Bureau. The RFS is a follow-on survey to the 2000 decennial census designed to collect, process, and produce information about the financing of all nonfarm, residential properties. Previous RF surveys have been integral parts of the decennial censuses since 1950. Primary users of RFS data in addition to HUD include the Bureau of Economic Analysis, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and the Congress. Data are collected, tabulated, and presented for properties, the standard unit of reference for financial transactions related to housing. In the RFS, a property is defined as all the buildings and land covered by a single first mortgage. The sample for the RFS is stratified by property size, with large properties overrepresented in the sample. Very large properties are selected with certainty to control their effect on the reliability of the estimates. The RFS is the only standardized single source of detailed information on property, mortgage, and financial characteristics for multiunit properties. Both property owners and mortgage lenders are interviewed, resulting in more accurate information on property and mortgage characteristics. As part of the decennial census, the RFS is mandatory. This is important in collecting information from mortgage lenders.