overview
The data reported here are from a nationwide survey of participants in USDA's Section 502 Single Family Direct Loan Housing Program. ERS developed the survey instrument with input from USDA's Rural Development agency, representatives of housing interest groups, and the academic research community. In the summer and fall of 1998, ERS and the Social and Economic Sciences Research Center of Washington State University conducted the national telephone survey of 3,027 recent program participants. These are borrowers whose loans closed between October 1, 1994 and April 4, 1998. The latter date is when the random sample of survey-eligible loans was selected from the nearly 60,000 home purchase loans made nationwide. Loans made in Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands were excluded. All survey respondents were borrowers on a current Section 502 single family direct loan as shown by Rural Development administrative records. Data reported here are based on the responses of the primary or secondary borrower who participated in the telephone interview.

feature
Meeting the Housing Needs of Rural Residents: Results of the 1998 Survey of USDA's Single Family Direct Loan Housing Program—This report decribes the section 502 program, identifies borrower characteristics, and addresses issues of program effectiveness and performance. It also compares the survey's findings with similar information for other low- and moderate-income rural residents and provides a separate analysis of program participation by elderly, single-parent, disabled, Hispanic, and Black households.

data files
USDA’s section 502 single family housing direct loan survey results are in a database that can be accessed interactively. The database has 83 variables in six categories: 1)Respondent, 2) Household, 3) Household income, 4) Housing unit, 5) Neighborhood, and 6) Rural Development. The user can construct one- and two-variable frequency tables and two-way crosstabs of column percentages. Table results can also be presented as bar charts. Additionally the entire database can also be downloaded as a SAS, Excel, or comma-delimited file.

• Database page
• Data dictionary
• Questionnaire

release date
January 2002.

related resources
Infrastructure and Rural Development Policy Briefing Room—The Rural Housing Chapter in the Infrastructure and Rural Development Policy Briefing Room presents research on housing conditions and costs, and on programs for improving the availability, affordability, and quality of rural homes.

for more information, contact: George Wallace
web administration: webadmin@ers.usda.gov
page updated: January 27, 2004