Census and Demographic Data

To support the collection, reporting, and analysis of HMDA and CRA data, the FFIEC publishes certain census, income, and other data for geographies. The FFIEC geography-based data are updated as required by changes in area delineations by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Because these data are updated periodically by the FFIEC, the FFIEC data may differ from data obtained directly from the Census Bureau. These data are intended to be used with HMDA and CRA data only and may not be suitable for other analytical purposes.

Most FFIEC data is updated every 5 years and will remain static until the next 5-year refresh. On years ending in 2 (2012, 2022, etc.), population data comes from the Decennial Census; on years ending in 7 (2017, 2027, etc.), the 5-year American Community Survey (ACS) is used instead. Data other than population data is always from the ACS. The four island areas are not included in the ACS thus island area data is taken from the Decennial Census and updated every 10 years. When using the ACS, the most recent 5-year ACS (at the time of the 5-year refresh) is always chosen and the same ACS year is used until the next 5-year refresh. For example, for 2017, the 2011-2015 5-year ACS was used. In 2022, the ACS source data was updated to the 2016-2020 5-year ACS. Full source information can be found in the flat file documentation. There are a few exceptions:

• The FFIEC Estimated Median Family Income (MFI) is based on HUD calculation methodology and is updated annually. It may be different from the list published by HUD due to OMB boundary changes to MSAs (Metropolitan Statistical Areas) or MDs (Metropolitan Divisions). See the MSA/MD MFI vs FFIEC Estimated MFI vs HUD MFI section below for more information on how OMB boundary changes impact the FFIEC Estimated MFI.
• Flags for the CRA Distressed and Underserved List use different sources as described in the CRA Distressed and Underserved List documentation.
• Major geographical boundary changes, such as boundary revisions to metropolitan statistical areas, may cause data to be updated between 5-year refreshes. See the MSA/MD MFI vs FFIEC Estimated MFI vs HUD MFI section below for more information.

MSA/MD MFI vs FFIEC Estimated MFI vs HUD MFI

There are two different MSA-level median family income (MFI) values provided by the FFIEC. The MSA/MD MFI is updated every 5 years (barring any boundary changes) and comes directly from the 5-year ACS. If the OMB publishes a boundary change, these boundaries will be adopted for the following year and the MFI will be recalculated from county-level data using the same 5-year ACS since the MSA would have had different boundaries in that ACS year.

The FFIEC Estimated MFI is updated every year and is calculated based on HUD’s methodology (click the button under the section Access Individual Income Limits Areas), however there can be differences between the HUD list and the FFIEC Estimated MFI in years where an OMB boundary change is applied. In HUD’s methodology, the MFI is calculated using the latest ACS data. For example, in 2024, the HUD methodology used the 2018-2022 5-year ACS or the 2022 1-year ACS if a statistically reliable MFI estimate was available. The FFIEC uses the most recent MSA boundaries provided by the OMB as opposed to the boundaries in place for the relevant ACS year. For example, the HUD MFI estimates for 2024 used the MSA/MD boundaries that were in place in 2022 (as used in the 2018-2022 5-year and 2022 1-year ACS), but the OMB published a boundary change update in 2023 that the FFIEC adopted for 2024. In cases where any MSA or MD boundaries changed, the FFIEC recalculates the MFI using county-level data from the same ACS used by HUD. If an MSA boundary did not change, then the MFI will match that provided by HUD.1 For more specific details, please see the Census income data dictionary and example spreadsheet.

Please see the FFIEC Estimated Median Family Income Report page for a list of FFIEC Estimated Median Family Incomes for each MSA and for the non-metropolitan areas of each state dating back to 1998.

Tract income level

The tract Income level indicator is a comparison of each tract’s MFI to the MFI of the MSA (or non-MSA) in which the tract lies. The tract MFI is taken directly from the 5-year ACS and remains static for 5 years; the MSA (or non-MSA) MFI also comes from the 5-year ACS and normally remains static for 5 years, but it may change if there are OMB boundary updates (see above). The tract income level may also change when the underlying data receives its 5-year refresh. For example, a tract income level may have changed between 2016 and 2017 because the FFIEC Census refreshed its underlying ACS data. Recall that from 2012-2016, the underlying income data came from the 2006-2010 ACS and from 2017-2021 the underlying income data came from the 2011-2015 ACS.

The tract income level indicator is the ratio of the tract’s MFI to the MSA or MD’s (or non-MSA’s) MFI. The resulting percentage identifies each census tract as unknown/not available, low, moderate, middle, or upper. The levels are divided as follows:

• 0: Unknown/not available. Tract MFI = 0.
• 1: Low. Tract MFI is > 0% and < 50% of the MSA/MD MFI.
• 2: Moderate. Tract MFI is ≥ 50% and < 80% of the MSA/MD MFI.
• 3: Middle. Tract MFI is ≥ 80% and < 120% of the MSA/MD MFI.
• 4: Upper. Tract MFI is ≥ 120% of the MSA/MD MFI.

Note that “Unknown” does not mean that the percentage has not been calculated, but rather that the tract MFI is either 0 or not available from Census. Such values are most common during decennial refreshes as all tract boundaries are updated, but they may also occur during the intermediate 5-year refresh. Because the tract MFI is based on static data, the tract income level indicator is only updated every 5 years or when there is an OMB boundary change. However, boundary changes only affect the MSA-level data (the denominator); therefore, only income levels that are not “Unknown” will change.

Boundary Changes

Every 10 years (on years ending in 2), there may be important tract boundary changes as the tract boundaries are updated for redistricting purposes. Major MSA boundary changes usually follow shortly after.

The FFIEC always adopts the latest OMB MSA boundary changes in the following calendar year. For example, when the OMB published OMB BULLETIN NO. 23-01 on July 21, 2023, the FFIEC adopted these changes for its 2024 Census, effective for data collected on or after January 1, 2024. These changes only affect values determined at the MSA/MD level, which are the MSA/MD MFI and the FFIEC Estimated MSA/MD MFI, and the tract income level (which relies on the MSA/MD MFI, see the Tract Income Level section above).

County changes are adopted annually, though they generally occur less frequently than MSA changes. For example, in 2022 the state of Connecticut communicated to the Census Bureau its intent to adopt its nine planning regions as new county equivalent geographic units. These county equivalent boundary changes were incorporated in the 2024 FFIEC Estimated MSA/MD MFIs for the entire state of Connecticut.

Tract boundaries are updated every 5 years, though the largest changes occur on Decennial Census years (years ending in 2). After a tract boundary update, the tract boundaries are no longer directly comparable to previous years, so tract-level data also cannot be directly compared. As such, on the CRA Distressed and Underserved List, the “previous year” designations will be excluded for those years. The source data for tract boundaries is listed in the Geocoding technical information section below.

Geocoding Technical Information

As of January 1, 2023, the service supporting the FFIEC’s Geocoder changed to ESRI’s ArcGIS World Geocoding Service. It is possible that the change may result in the FFIEC’s Geocoder returning a different census tract and display location for certain addresses compared with the previously provided results. We provide details below on the FFIEC Geocoder process. The FFIEC Geocoder returns a census tract for an address only if the following conditions are met:

• The address exists in the ESRI address database.
• The ESRI “address type” is either a Subaddress, PointAddress, or StreetAddress.
• The ESRI match score must be 98 or higher.

When these conditions are met, the ArcGIS World Geocoding Service returns a latitude and longitude. Taking the coordinates, the Geocoder next determines the census tract for the address. The appropriate census tract is determined by TIGER files issued by the U.S. Census Bureau. Census updates tract boundaries every 10 years and adopts tract/county code changes annually as necessary. The following table presents links to the appropriate TIGER file for each FFIEC Census year. Users attempting to independently replicate the Geocoder should download TIGER files for each state or US territory.

As an aid to individuals who wish to independently replicate the FFIEC Geocoder, the MSA-state-county-tract crosswalk Excel file can be used to quickly determine the state and county names associated with geocoded state and county codes. The lists are separated by year to account for OMB MSA boundary changes.

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  In some cases, HUD uses Fair Market Rent (FMR) areas instead of the MSA boundaries provided by the OMB. The FFIEC always uses OMB boundaries, so in these instances, the FFIEC MFI and HUD MFI may not match since the boundaries are different.