Table 2.  Rental and Homeowner Vacancy Rates, by Area:  Fourth Quarter 2006 and 2007
          (in percent)


                                    Rental vacancy rates


                           Fourth        Fourth        90-Percent
         Area             quarter      quarter   Confidence Interval (&plusmn;)a
                           2006         2007     of 2007 rate of difference


United States...........        9.8          9.6          0.4          0.5

  Inside Metropolitan
     Statistical Areas..        9.9          9.6          0.5          0.5
    In principal cities.       10.1          9.6          0.6          0.6
    Not in principal cities
    (suburbs)...........        9.5          9.7          0.7          0.7
  Outside Metropolitan
    Statistical Areas...        9.7          9.5          1.4          1.5

 Northeast.............         6.5          6.6          0.7          0.8
 Midwest...............        11.9         11.1          0.8          1.0
 South.................        12.4         12.3          0.9          1.0
 West..................         7.0          6.8          0.7          0.9




                                    Homeowner vacancy rates


                           Fourth        Fourth          90-Percent
         Area             quarter      quarter   Confidence Interval (&plusmn;)a
                           2006         2007     of 2007 rate of difference

United States..........         2.7          2.8          0.1          0.2

  Inside Metropolitan
     Statistical Areas.         2.8          2.8          0.2          0.2
    In principal cities.        3.6          3.7          0.4          0.4
    Not in principal cities
    (suburbs)...........        2.4          2.4          0.2          0.2
  Outside Metropolitan
    Statistical Areas...        2.3          2.6          0.3          0.4

 Northeast.............         2.0          2.2          0.3          0.4
 Midwest...............         2.9          3.2          0.3          0.3
 South.................         3.0          2.9          0.2          0.3
 West..................         2.4          2.7          0.3          0.4

 
    aA 90-percent confidence interval is a measure of an estimate's reliability.  The larger the 
    confidence interval is, in relation to the size of the estimate, the less reliable the estimate.

Note:  Metropolitan Statistical Area data for 2005 and later are not comparable to earlier data.  
Beginning in first quarter 2005, the Current Population Survey/Housing Vacancy Survey is using the 
new metropolitan and micropolitan statistical definitions which were announced by the Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) in June 2003, and were based on the application of the 2000 standards 
to Census 2000 data.  OMB announced updates as of December 2003, based on application of the 2000 
standards to more recent Census Bureau estimates. In this report, outside Metropolitan Statistical 
Areas includes micropolitan and non-metropolitan statistical areas.  The December 2003 definitions 
are available at:
http://www.census.gov/population/www/estimates/metrodef.html and 
http://www.census.gov/population/www/estimates/aboutmetro.html.