Exploring Gentrification

There is no one correct method for identifying gentrification, and finding the perfect method is not what I sought out to do. My identification of gentrifying neighborhoods serves a primary purpose of discovering areas which are currently undergoing the most rapid changes, and in which short-term rental units and the associated tourism may be leading to raising house prices. For my work, the most important step in identifying gentrification is communicating how I did it. Below are the features I chose to make this determination, which I selected based on research of previous studies. My data was pulled from readily available, free sources - sometimes, dates may not match due to what each separate source provided. Links to sources can be found on the Notes page of this site.

Percent Change in House Price (2016-2021) - Provided by Zillow, the Zillow Home Value Index is a "smoothed, seasonally adjusted measure of the typical home value and market changes across a given region and housing type." This data was only available by zip code, so I mapped census tract regions to the closest zip code.

Percent Change in Rental Unit Price (2016-2021) - Provided by Zillow, the Zillow Observed Rent Index is a "smoothed measure of the typical observed marked rate rent across a given region." This data was only available by zip code, so I mapped census tract regions to the closest zip code.

Percent Change of White Population (2010-2019) - From the Census acs5 report, this looks at the change of population in a given census tract who identifies as White.

Percent Change of Education Attainment (2010-2019) - From the Census acs5 report, this looks at the percent change of population in a given census tract who have attained a Bachelor's Degree or higher.

Percent Change in Tenure (2010-2019) - From the Census acs5 report, this looks at the percent change of population in a given census tract who rent their homes. In this case, a decrease in those who rent would signify gentrification, as homeownership is considered a sign of wealth.

Percent Change in Median Household Income (2010-2019) - From the Census acs5 report, the percent change of the median household income of population within a given census tract.

Percent Change in Poverty (2010-2019) - From the Census acs5 report, the percent change of households deemed as under the poverty level. In this case, a decrease in poverty would signify gentrification.