Sorry if this has previously answered. I'm tryin to figure out median income levels within my assesment area. Which figures are ussed when determining low and moderate income levels. Do you use Geography or Borrower or both. Can we simply use HUD's MSA median family income or should we be calculating median households. It's just so confusing to me.

You should bookmark the FFIEC site and simply enter an address at the "geocode" link.

The examiners use this and you should to. For the time being you have to click the year tab for 2013 because it automatically defaults to 2014 and MFI is not available yet for 2014.

http://www.ffiec.gov/

The regulations tells you what numbers to use in calculating. You can look up tract income level, as Pale referenced. To calculate borrower/applicant income, you divide their income by the area(MSA/non-MSA)income. That is how a tract income level is determined...tract income/MSA non-MSA. Same denominator in both, different numerator.

(m) Income level includes:

(1) Low-income, which means an individual income that is less than 50 percent of the area median income, or a median family income that is less than 50 percent, in the case of a geography.

(2) Moderate-income, which means an individual income that is at least 50 percent and less than 80 percent of the area median income, or a median family income that is at least 50 and less than 80 percent, in the case of a geography.

(3) Middle-income, which means an individual income that is at least 80 percent and less than 120 percent of the area median income, or a median family income that is at least 80 and less than 120 percent, in the case of a geography.

(4) Upper-income, which means an individual income that is 120 percent or more of the area median income, or a median family income that is 120 percent or more, in the case of a geography.

To get the tract level, after you have geocoded an address, a screen will give basic info about that census tract, you will see a button at the bottom titled "demographic data" - something like that.

Click that button and you will get all the info you need.....but again, be sure and chose 2013 for the year.

Kathleen,

I was under the impression that 50% was low (not moderate), 80% moderate (not middle), 120% middle (not upper)?

Do you have a good source to clarify this?

Thanks

What I put above is pasted directly from Reg BB (and the same is true for OCC and FDIC). go to definition of income level.

<50 is low
50 to <80 is moderate
80 to <120 is middle
120 and up is upper

Yep, those are the levels....

For tract income (only goes up to 2013 at this point) you can review an entire county or MSA here:

http://www.ffiec.gov/census/default.aspx

You can retrieve the preliminary 2014 Census tract income classes at http://www.ffiec.gov/cra/default.htm

KB's post has a description of calculating income class that I believe is confusing to a CRA neophyte. In her first paragraph she states that the calculation for borrower income class is done the same way as for tract income class and says,"Same denominator for both". But the denominator is not the same for both. The denominator is referenced to the MFI for the MSA or statewide non-MSA in which the loan is located. But in the case of the tract income class the number is changed infrequently whereas the denominator for the borrower income class is change annually.

The MFI used for tract income class used to be changed decennially (now the FFIEC will publish a new number every 5 years) or whenever a MSA or non-MSA definition has changed (OMB periodically will change the composition of MSA's).

The EMFI used for determining applicant income class is changed annually and published by the FFIEC with the annual census database usually released in June.

So the description of the denominator sounds the same because you are referencing the same geography level (MSA, MD or statewide non-MSA) but the actual denominators are quite different and subject to change at different times.

I am certain KB understands this distinction, but I don't think it is clear in her explanation.

The difference between the 2 figures is really important. I don't have many low- or moderate-income tracts in my assessment area, but I have many low- or moderate-income individuals.