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UTILITIES
The data on utility costs
were obtained from answers to long-form questionnaire Items 45a
through 45d, which were asked
on a sample basis at occupied housing units. Questions 45a
through 45d asked for the
annual cost of utilities (electricity, gas, water and sewer) and other
fuels (oil, coal, wood,
kerosene, etc.). For the tabulations, these annual amounts are divided by 12
to derive the average monthly
cost and are then included in the computation of ‘‘Gross Rent,’’
‘‘Gross Rent as a
Percentage of Household Income in 1999,’’ ‘‘Selected Monthly Owner
Costs,’’ and
‘‘Selected Monthly Owner
Costs as a Percentage of Household Income in 1999.’’
Costs are recorded if paid by
or billed to occupants, a welfare agency, relatives, or friends. Costs
that are paid by landlords,
included in the rent payment, or included in condominium or
cooperative fees are
excluded.
Limitation of the data. Research
has shown that respondents tended to overstate their
expenses for electricity and
gas when compared with utility company records. There is some
evidence that this
overstatement is reduced when annual costs are asked rather than monthly
costs. Caution should be
exercised in using these data for direct analysis because costs are not
reported for certain kinds of
units, such as renter-occupied units with all utilities included in the
rent and owner-occupied
condominium units with utilities included in the condominium fee.
Comparability. The
data on utility costs have been collected since 1980 for owner-occupied
housing units, and since 1940
for renter-occupied housing units. In 1980, costs for electricity and
gas were collected as average
monthly costs. Beginning in 1990, all utility and fuel costs were
collected as annual costs and divided by
12 to provide an average monthly cost.
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