U.S. Department of Commerce

Survey of Market Absorption of Apartments (SOMA)

About the SOMA Survey - Fourth Quarter 2007 

The Survey of Market Absorption (SOMA) measures how soon privately

financed, nonsubsidized, unfurnished units in buildings with five or more

units are rented or sold (absorbed) after completion.   In addition, the 

Survey collects data on characteristics of the units such as number of 

bedrooms, asking rent, and asking price.



All statistics from the SOMA refer to apartments in newly 

constructed buildings with five units or more.  Absorption rates reflect 

the first time an apartment is rented after completion or the first time

a condominium or cooperative apartment is sold after completion.  If

apartments initially intended to be sold as condominium or cooperative

units are, instead, offered by the builder or building owner for rent they

are counted as rental apartments.  Units categorized as federally subsidized

are those built under two programs of the Department of Housing and Urban

Development (Section 8, Low Income Housing Assistance, and Section 202, 

Citizens Housing Direct Loans) and all units in buildings containing  

apartments in the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) rent supplement program.     

The data on privately financed units include privately owned housing subsidized by  

state and local governments.  Time-share units, continuing care retirement units, 

and turnkey units (privately built for and sold to local public housing authorities 

after completion) are outside the scope of the survey.



Tables 1 through 4 and Table 9 provide information about privately financed,

nonsubsidized, unfurnished, rental apartments.  Table 5 provides information about

privately financed, nonsubsidized, condominium and cooperative apartments,

while Tables 6 through 8 and Table 10 provide information about condominium

apartments only.  Table 11 summarizes the totals for all types of newly

constructed apartments in buildings with five units or more.
Contact George Boyd at 301-763-3199 or mail to george.t.boyd@census.gov for further information on the Survey of Market Absorption of Apartments Data.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Social, Economic, and Housing Statistics Division