Objectives of the Report

This American Housing Survey (AHS) Quality Profile describes potential sources of errors in AHS data and quality control procedures used in the operation of the survey, and describes the magnitude of errors in AHS estimates. The description covers both sampling and nonsampling errors but emphasis is on the nonsampling errors. The report is intended to provide researchers and data users with a single source for a wide range of information on the quality of AHS data.

For information on sampling errors and their effect on analyses, refer to the appendix "Source and Accuracy of the Estimates" in published Current Housing Reports (H150 and H170 series).

The Quality Profile is intended for both data users involved in research or policy decisions and Census Bureau and U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) staff, (and others) who are responsible for or have an interest in AHS design and methodology. For the data users, this report describes the levels of error associated with specific categories of estimates that they use in their research or policy decisions. For those interested in the AHS design, data collection procedures, and estimation methods, this report describes the magnitude of errors associated with different features of the design, such as respondent rules, the interviewing process, and quality control procedures for data collection and processing operations.

This profile illustrates many design issues and methodological problems; some of them are unique to AHS but most are likely to arise in any household survey. Survey researchers concerned with survey design and methodological problems in surveys other than the AHS will also find many topics of interest in this report.