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I am trying to do a study about New York City. I need to know different information about every block level in New York. But I couldn't find updated information.

I looked for specific information on : http://www.census.gov/

I found these datasets but it seems like very old between 2000-2010. http://www2.census.gov/geo/tiger/TIGER2010/TABBLOCK/2010/

Where can I find data about demography, poverty, relevant information about NY Citizens (every block), Not just in general as shown here

Can anyone brief me what is census 2010 datasets ? Is it what I need to look for ?

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  • hi if american factfinder doesn't have the stats you need, you can get started with the acs 5-year microdata quickly here or perhaps the pums files.
    – Anthony Damico
    Mar 23, 2014 at 1:08
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    Microdata is only available to the PUMA (public use microdata area) summary level. PUMAs are created to contain about 100,000 people. That makes them a lousy solution for this question.
    – Joe Germuska
    Mar 31, 2014 at 20:19

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Block level data is only available from the Decennial Census, which means that you can only get fundamental demographic and housing data. This amounts to age, sex, race, household/family structure, home ownership and home vacancy rates. Some Decennial Census tables are only tabulated at the census tract level and higher, because of restrictions based on releasing data which can personally identify respondents

Questions about poverty, income, education, etc are now collected in the American Community Survey, which only tabulates data down to the block group level. Furthermore, because it's a survey and not a complete count, for many estimates at the block group level there is a high margin of error.

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  • I couldn't find updated housing data (between 2012-now) of Decennial Census. Can you give specific link to show how we get Decennial Census of NY City.
    – user3378649
    Apr 1, 2014 at 23:46
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    Decennial means once every ten years, so there will not be updated decennial census data until 2020. American Community Survey data is released every year, but it takes nearly a year to tabulate, so the most recent available data is the 2012 release (which was published in the last quarter of 2013). Small area data is only released in five year datasets, so you could use the ACS 2008-2012. You may be best off seeking help from the New York State Census Data Center, who can provide close consultation: labor.ny.gov/nys-data-center/index.shtm
    – Joe Germuska
    Apr 4, 2014 at 19:21
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Below is from the US Census site. It appears that since the 2010 census, the type of data you are looking for is not available at the level of detail it was prior:

http://www.census.gov/hhes/www/poverty/about/datasources/description.html#cps

American Community Survey (ACS) ACS homepage

Starting in 2006, the ACS releases annual subnational estimates of income and poverty for all places, counties, and metropolitan areas with a population of at least 65,000 as well as the nation and the states. The sample size of this survey is about 2.9 million addresses per year, making the ACS exceptionally useful for subnational analyses. Three-year period estimates are available for areas and subpopulations as small as 20,000. Starting in December 2010, five-year period estimates are available for census tracts/block groups and for small subgroups of the population. ACS estimates are updated every year. Because of its large sample size, estimates from the fully implemented ACS provide the best survey-based state level income and poverty estimates. Time series trend data will be available for all geographic areas, and for small population subgroups, beginning with the 2006 ACS for geographic areas with population of 65,000 or more. (Background on ACS)

Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) SIPP homepage

The Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP), a longitudinal survey, is most useful for understanding the dynamics of income and poverty (changes in income and poverty status for the same households over time, typically 3 to 4 years) and for examining the nature and frequency of poverty spells. Unlike the ACS and CPS ASEC, the SIPP also permits researchers to look at estimates of income and poverty for periods more than or less than one year. (Background on SIPP)

Census 2000 long form

The best measure of change between 1990 and 2000 for subnational areas and for subpopulations are the comparisons of Census 2000 long form estimates with those from the 1990 Census long form. Since the ACS eliminated the need for a long form, the 2010 census will not provide income and poverty estimates. For small areas and subpopulations, ACS multiyear estimates are available for comparison to Census 2000 and earlier. ACS 5-year data products provide data at the census tract level which can be compared “with caution” to earlier decennial census estimates. (We suggest that comparisons focus on the direction of change, e.g. whether poverty rates went up or down, rather than the magnitude of changes). (Background on Census 2000 long form)

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Q: "I found these datasets but it seems like very old between 2000-2010"

A: These datasets are Census TIGER data and contain geographical Census tabulation blocks boundaries, along with other geo information like land/water area for the block, centroid coordinates, etc... You will need this data to map/project these blocks in your application. This dataset doesn't contain Decennial Census data.

Q: "Where can I find data about demography, poverty, relevant information about NY Citizens (every block), Not just in general as shown here..."

A: You can download this information here: http://www2.census.gov/census_2010/

See Summary File 1 and 2, which are structured by states. The good starting place is here: http://www.census.gov/2010census/data/

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