Job Aid

Form D-461.1
February 2009

Address Canvassing
Listers
Job-Aid
Hard-to-Find Units in Small Multi-Unit Buildings

U.S. Department of Commerce
Economics and Statistics Administration
U.S. Census Bureau

This document contains no Title 13 data or Personally Identifiable
Information (PII). Examples do not contain real names, real addresses,
or other real data.

Form D-461.1

Job Aid: Hard to Find Units in Small Multi-Unit Buildings

Table of Contents
Topic 1: Overview ..........................................................................................................................1
Topic 2: Clues for Finding Housing Units......................................................................................4
Topic 3: Situational Involving Small Multi-Unit Buildings ...........................................................9
Topic 4: Assigning Unit Designations to Adds ............................................................................12
Appendix 1: Confidentiality Notice..............................................................................................15
Appendix 2: Illustrations of Small Multi-Units ............................................................................16
Appendix 3: Diagram of Various Situations.................................................................................19
Appendix 4: Standard Abbreviations............................................................................................20
Appendix 5: Practice Exercises ....................................................................................................21

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Job Aid: Hard to Find Units in Small Multi-Unit Buildings

Notes

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JobAid: Hard-to-Find Units in Small Multi-Unit Structures

Job-Aid: Hard-to-Find Units in Small Multi-Unit Buildings

Topic 1: Overview
Introduction

To do an accurate 2010 Census we need to include every place
where people could or do live. You will easily find most of the
housing units in your assignment area. But some people live in
housing units that are hard to see as you canvass your area. We
refer to these units as hard-to-find units.
Some of these hard-to-find housing units are in small multi-unit
buildings, like private homes or small buildings expanded into
more housing units. The term “small multi-unit building”
describes a building containing between 2 and 19 housing units.
They come in all shapes and sizes, ranging from what looks like a
one-family private home to a building with several levels.
This job-aid will help you locate hard-to-find units that may be
missing from our Address List in small multi-unit buildings. This
job-aid is in addition to your regular Address Canvassing
procedures and only applies to small multi-unit buildings.
These units might not receive a 2010 Census questionnaire unless
you add them to the Address List. Here are some examples:
•
•
•
•

Buildings that once only had a few housing units may now
have additional apartments.
Owners of large houses with full basements and attics may
turn those spaces into rental apartments.
Two or more separate housing units may exist in the main
living space.
Owners of convenience stores and other types of stores
may use part of the building for housing units.

In many cases you will find these units, add them to the Address
List, and move on to your next address. However, in some cases
you may have to be persuasive and do a little detective work to
account for the hard-to-find housing units.
Building owners, managers and tenants are not always willing to
disclose the existence of these additional units due to concerns
about zoning violations or other potential infractions.

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Introduction
(continued)

JobAid: Hard-to-Find Units in Small Multi-Unit Structures

Always maintain a polite, professional manner when asking about
additional units at an address. Explain that you are just there to
obtain address information.
Never argue with anyone over the existence of additional units at
an address.
If the owner or tenant is reluctant to cooperate, try to find
someone else who is knowledgeable about the address, such as a
long-time neighbor or the mail carrier.
If you see evidence that additional units exist, keep them on the
Address List or add them if they are not already on the Address
List, even if you cannot find someone willing to confirm them.
Do not delete any units from the Address List. Explain the
situation completely on an INFO-COMM. Do not mark the AA
complete until a supervisor has told you so. Do not take any
other action on these units (This only applies to small multi-unit
buildings. You may delete nonexistent or duplicate units in other
situations, as described in your regular Address Canvassing
procedures.)
If you are unsure how to handle a situation, explain the situation
fully on an INFO-COMM before taking any action. Do not
mark the AA complete until a supervisor tells you to do so.

Why Are We
Concerned About
Hard-To-Find Units?

The 2010 Census could miss some housing units in small multiunit buildings unless you account for them on the Address List.
Be alert for the clues described in Topic 2. If you see any clues,
confirm the situation with the owner or an occupant if the owner
is not available. Tell them that laws keep you from sharing their
information with city agencies or with anyone else. Give them a
copy of the Confidentiality Notice shown in Appendix 1.
If the owner or occupant is reluctant to provide information, look
for another respondent such as a neighbor or the mail carrier.
Our goal is to count all housing units. This helps ensure that your
community gets the federally funded services it needs.

Only Add Housing
Units To The List

Only add missing housing units to the Address List. This means
the occupants of the missing units must:
•

live separately from any other occupants in the building,
and

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Only Add Housing
Units To The List
(continued)

JobAid: Hard-to-Find Units in Small Multi-Unit Structures

•

have direct access, that is, the entrance to the living
quarters is directly from the outside of the building or
through a common hall.

If more than one family shares the same housing unit the Census
treats it as one household.
Be sure to follow all the procedures in your Address Canvassing
manual for adding or correcting information on the Address List.
Keep in mind these special procedures only apply to small multiunit buildings, and the regular Address Canvassing procedures
apply in all other buildings.
The Census Bureau has no interest whatsoever in knowing the
legal status of any housing unit. Do not ask about the legal
status of any housing unit. The information you obtain about
housing units at an address is strictly confidential.
Example:

Door to
bsmt apt.

This house has a basement apartment, a main unit, a 2nd floor
apartment, and a driveway leading to a rear apartment. The
Address List shows it as a single-family house. You need to
assign it multi-unit status and add the missing units. If the current
occupant or owner is reluctant to cooperate, find someone else to
verify the existence of each housing unit, or add them to the
Address List based on your observation using the procedures in
Topic 4.

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Topic 2: Clues for Finding Housing Units
Overview

This Topic provides guidelines to help you locate all the housing
units in small multi-unit buildings. Always work from “ground
to the list”, that is, confirm what is on the ground and then see if it
exists on the Address List, not the other way around. This is the
same procedure you use for all your Address Canvassing work.
•

•

•

•

Signs of Additional
Units In Buildings

Owners often remodel large private homes into rental
apartments. The address list may show only one unit
there.
The building may have additional housing units since its
original construction. Some or all of the units might not
have posted unit numbers or letters.
The occupants may all get their mail at one mailbox and
then sort it out later. The building may actually have more
units than the doorbells and mailboxes show.
You need to account for all the separate housing units in
these buildings so they are included in the 2010 Census.

The following clues may alert you to the presence of additional
units in a building. See also Appendix 2 for illustrations of
buildings that may contain more housing units than are shown on
the Address List for the address.
Keep in mind that these clues by themselves are not always
indicators that the building has hard to find units. One clue is
often not enough evidence, but a combination of clues offers
more evidence. However, if you think the building has more
units than are shown on the Address List, always confirm it with
the owner. If the owner is not available or unwilling to answer
your questions, talk to an occupant or someone else who is
knowledgeable about the building.
Here are some examples of clues that a building has more than
one housing unit. This is not an exhaustive list, so there may be
other clues that are more common in your assignment area.

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JobAid: Hard-to-Find Units in Small Multi-Unit Structures

•

two or more house numbers or a range of house numbers,

The house
has two
house
numbers.

•

multiple mailboxes or buzzers, particularly two sets of
doorbells,

Multiple
doorbells

•
•
•
•
•
•
•

several gas or electric meters,
many garbage cans or several newspapers,
“For Rent” signs,
curtains or bars on a basement window,
a house number on a garage,
many vehicles parked around the house,
side or rear walkways,

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JobAid: Hard-to-Find Units in Small Multi-Unit Structures

•

outside or basement doors leading to housing units,

Outside door
leading to
basement
apt.

•
•
•

outside stairs,
large sheds behind or beside the building,
unmarked doors possibly leading to housing units,

Outside door
leading to
basement
apt.

•

several television satellite dishes on the roof,

Satellite
dishes.

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JobAid: Hard-to-Find Units in Small Multi-Unit Structures

•
•
•

signs of habitation in storage areas,
outside stairs leading to the attic,
fire escapes to additional units.

Fire escapes

Under Renovation

Renovation may be ongoing, or planned, in the building. Only
add missing units for which you see evidence of construction.

When To Inquire

If you see any of the signs of additional housing units in a
building, or the Address List shows more or fewer units that you
find at an address, first ask an owner for information. If the
owner is not available ask a resident.
Owners or residents may be reluctant to tell you about all the
units at the address. Do not confront anyone or insist upon
cooperation. In this situation, try to find a knowledgeable longtime resident of the neighborhood and ask them about the units at
the address. As a last resort, add the units based on observation
and use the unit descriptors in Topic 4.
If you are unsure how to handle a situation, explain it fully on an
INFO-COMM. Do not mark the AA as complete.

Housing Units In
Commercial Buildings

Commercial space may contain housing units. If you see several
mailboxes or utility meters near commercial buildings, or other
signs of people living there, stop and inquire. Look for the clues
described earlier in this topic.

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Clearly Identify The
Added Units

JobAid: Hard-to-Find Units in Small Multi-Unit Structures

While it is very important to add any missing housing units to the
Address List, it is just as important to clearly identify each added
housing unit so they will receive a 2010 Census questionnaire.
Topic 4 provides help for identifying each added unit.
In the illustration below, the owner previously had only storage
space on the entire 1st floor, so the Address List shows only a 2nd
floor apartment. You find four housing units on the 1st floor with
no unit identifications. You would add all of the 1st floor units
and clearly identify each of them.

Front Door

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JobAid: Hard-to-Find Units in Small Multi-Unit Structures

Topic 3: Situations Involving Small Multi-Unit Buildings
Overview

Some or all of the units in small multi-unit buildings may not
have posted unit numbers or letters. For some of these places the
Address List shows the basic address with an incorrect number of
units or missing unit designations because the building has
expanded to include more housing units.
This topic provides rules for handling various types of situations.
Please see Appendix 3 on page 18 for a diagram.

(Case 1)--The Address
List shows only one
unit for the address
but you find evidence
that more units exist at
the address.

If the Address List shows only one unit for the address but you
find more units there:
•

•

•
•
•

Try to confirm with the owner, tenant or another
knowledgeable respondent, the number of housing units in
the building.
If the owner or resident is reluctant to cooperate, maintain
a professional and polite demeanor at all times. Then try
to find someone else who is knowledgeable about the
housing units at the address.
If the respondent confirms the additional units, add each
missing housing unit to the Address List.
Ask the respondent to clearly identify each unit. Use the
posted unit designations.
See Topic 4 if any units do not have posted designations.

If you cannot find anyone to confirm the units at the address, do
your best to list them by observation, but be sure to follow the
rules in Topic 4. For example identify the units as 1st Fl, 2nd Fl,
3rd Fl R and 3rd Fl L.

(Case 2)—There are
multiple units on the
Address List for the
building, and you find
multiple units there,
but they do not have
unit designations
posted.

If there is more than one unit shown on the Address List for the
building, and you do find multiple units there, but they do not
have unit designations posted:
•
•
•

Try to confirm the exact number of units with the owner,
tenant or another knowledgeable respondent.
Add any missing housing units to the Address List.
Follow the instructions in Topic 4 to properly identify the
location of each unit.
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JobAid: Hard-to-Find Units in Small Multi-Unit Structures

(Case 2)—There are
multiple units on the
Address List for the
building, and you find
multiple units there,
but they do not have
unit designations
posted. (continued)

If the respondent tells you that the address only has one unit, ask
the reason for the additional mailboxes, doorbells or other signs
of multiple units. Do not delete any units from the Address
List. Do not mark the AA as complete. Explain the situation
on an INFO-COMM.

(Case 3)—There are
multiple units on the
Address List for the
building, and you find
multiple units there,
but the unit
designations posted on
the building do not
match the unit
designations on the
Address List.

If there is more than one unit shown for the address on the
Address List, and you find multiple units there, but the unit
designations posted on the building do not match the unit
designations on the Address List:
•

•

Try to confirm with a knowledgeable respondent the exact
number of units in the building, and their exact unit
designations.
Make additions and corrections to the Address List to
reflect the correct posted unit designation for each housing
unit at the address.

If the Address List shows more units than the respondent says
exist at the address, do not delete any units from the Address List.
Do not take any other action on these units.
•

•

Make corrections to the Address List as necessary to
reflect the posted unit designations of the units you were
able to confirm with the respondent.
Fill out an INFO-COMM showing to whom you spoke,
and which units you were not able to confirm with the
respondent. Do not mark the AA as complete. An
office supervisor will tell you what to enter on your HHC.

If you are unable to confirm the unit designations, list them and
fill an INFO-COMM. Do not mark the AA as complete.

(Case 4)—There are
multiple units on the
Address List for the
building, but you find
only one housing unit.

If there are multiple units on the Address List for the building, but
you find only one housing unit there:
•
•
•

Try to confirm with a knowledgeable respondent whether
this building has one or more housing units.
If it has more than one housing unit, confirm with the
respondent the exact number of units at the address.
Add any missing units to the Address List.

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(Case 4)—There are
multiple units on the
Address List for the
building, but you find
only one housing unit
(continued)

Other Situations

JobAid: Hard-to-Find Units in Small Multi-Unit Structures

•

Use the posted unit designations, if there are any, to
identify each unit. Otherwise, follow the guidelines in
Topic 4.

If the respondent confirms that the building has only one housing
unit, and you do not see any evidence to suggest otherwise,
explain the situation fully on an INFO-COMM. Do not mark
the AA as complete. An office supervisor will resolve the
situation.

If you find any other situations in small multi-unit buildings that
do not fall into one of the four cases discussed above, document
the situation on an INFO-COMM and discuss it with your
supervisor at your next daily meeting. Do not mark the AA as
complete.

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JobAid: Hard-to-Find Units in Small Multi-Unit Structures

Topic 4: Assigning Unit Designations To Adds
Overview

We must be able to clearly identify each housing unit at an
address in order to mail it a 2010 Census questionnaire.
If you add any units to the Address List, you must clearly identify
each housing unit. Also, you must make sure the unit
designations already shown on the Address List are accurate and
complete. By unit designations, we mean letters or numbers or a
combination, such as “Apt 1” or “Apt A” or “2B” or “4 L”.
Use the guidelines in this Topic to assign and/or correct the unit
designations in the Address List.

All The Units Have
Posted Unit
Designations

If there are posted unit designations for all the housing units, you
must use those identifiers to update the Address List. Use them
even if they are out of order or non-consecutive.

The Units Do Not All
Have Posted
Designations

If there are no posted unit designations for some or all of the
units, rely on the respondent or your observation to identify the
location of each housing unit in the building. Use the Unit
Identifier field. Correct any unit designations that are incorrect
on the Address List and add any that are missing. Use the
standard abbreviations shown in Appendix 4 and in your Listers
Manual.
•
•

•
•
•

Do not make up your own apartment letters or
numbers.
Always list from the lowest floor to the highest floor. List
any basement apartments first, and any attic apartments
last.
Consider the level where you enter the building as the first
floor.
Follow your normal Address Canvassing procedures for
listing units in a multi-unit building.
Always show the position of the housing unit in relation to
others in the building, such as “frnt”, “back”, etc.

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The Units Do Not All
Have Posted
Designations
(continued)

JobAid: Hard-to-Find Units in Small Multi-Unit Structures

•

Here are some examples of how to clearly identify units
which do not have posted designations:
st
st
– 1 Fl Front, 1 Fl Middle, 1st Flr Rear,
– Lowr, Uppr,
– Bsmt, L, R, Atc,
– Frnt R, Rear R, Rear L, Frnt L,
– Guesthouse, Grg, side or rear shed,
– Frnt porch, rear porch, or side porch.

Problem Situations

If you are not sure how to handle a case, explain it on an INFOCOMM. Do not mark the AA as complete.

Examples

In this example, the Address List shows one unit at 18-186th
Street, but when you get there you see four buzzers on the front
door. The units do not have posted designations. All the units are
on the same floor. The respondent says the units are located as
shown below:

Identify these housing units as “Owner’s Apt ”, “Front L”,
“Middle L” and “Rear L”. Use your normal listing procedures.
Put the unit information into the Unit Identifier field on the
Address List.
In this example, the house is a one-story house with an attic and a
basement. The Address List shows only two apartments but you
find two on the main level (1st floor) and two in the basement.
They use the attic for storage.

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JobAid: Hard-to-Find Units in Small Multi-Unit Structures

Examples (continued)

In this house, you would add the basement apartments to the
Address List. Then make sure the Address List correctly shows
the designations for the units on the main floor. Follow your
normal Address Canvassing procedures for listing the units.
The goal is to clearly identify each housing unit so we can mail a
2010 Census questionnaire to each unit. We also need to be able
to identify the units in case other Census Bureau staff need to visit
the address in the future.
IMPORTANT: In situations where there are no posted unit
designations, always enter the unit information in the unit
identifier field as described in Table 5-4 of your Address
Canvassing Listers Manual.
If you think you have found a place that qualifies as an “Other
Living Quarters”, explain the situation on an INFO-COMM and
discuss it with your supervisor before taking any action in regards
to the place. Do not mark the AA as complete until your
supervisor tells you to do so.

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JobAid: Hard-to-Find Units in Small Multi-Unit Structures

Appendix 1. D-31, Confidentiality Notice

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JobAid: Hard-to-Find Units in Small Multi-Unit Structures

Appendix 2. Illustrations of Small Multi-Units

Figure 1. This building has multiple door buzzers with names but no unit designations.

Figure 2. This house has two house numbers (not shown), but only one mail slot and one doorbell.

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JobAid: Hard-to-Find Units in Small Multi-Unit Structures

Figure 3. See the railing leading to a basement apartment that may have been a garage at one time?

Figure 4. This store has a side door leading to an apartment and indications of possible housing units above the
store.

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JobAid: Hard-to-Find Units in Small Multi-Unit Structures

Figure 5. The fire escapes suggest several housing units. There are also signs of basement apartments.

Figure 6. This is a house with a set of old doorbells and a set of new doorbells. There could be 6 units here or 12
units here, so you need to inquire to confirm the number of housing units. Always inquire about any building
with two sets of doorbells.

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JobAid: Hard-to-Find Units in Small Multi-Unit Structures

Appendix 3. Diagram of Various Situations
This chart shows the general procedures for handling various situations you might encounter at
small multi-unit buildings. Refer to Topic 3 for the detailed procedures. This diagram only
provides a general overview. Follow the detailed procedures in Topic 3 on page 9 for each small
multi-unit situation.

D o e s th e n u m b e r
o f u n its o n th e A d d re ss L ist
m a tc h th e n u m b e r o f u n its
yo u o b se rve ?

YES

F o llo w sta n d a rd
A d d re ss L istin g
P ro ce d u re s

NO

D id yo u fin d
m o re u n its?

YES

A re U n it
D e sig n a tio n s
p o ste d?

NO

A d d a n y m is sin g u n its
a n d a s sig n e a ch a
sta n d a rd d e sig n a tio n
(se e T o p ic 4 )

NO

D id yo u fin d
le ss u n its?

YES

D O N O T d e le te
a n y u n its. E xp la in
th e situ a tio n in a n
IN F O -C O M M

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YES

A d d a n y m issin g
u n its u sin g th e
p o s te d id e n tifie rs
(se e T o p ic 4 )

D-461.1

JobAid: Hard-to-Find Units in Small Multi-Unit Structures

Appendix 4. Standard Abbreviations
For a full list refer to Appendix B in your Lister’s Manual.
Attic -- Atc
Basement -- Bsmt
Building -- Bldg
Downstairs -- Dwnstr
Floor -- Fl
Front -- Frnt
Garage -- Grg
House -- Hse
Left -- L
Lower -- Lowr
Penthouse -- PH
Porch -- Prch
Right -- R
Room Rm
Suite -- Ste
Trailer (mobile home) -- Trlr
Upper -- Uppr

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JobAid: Hard-to-Find Units in Small Multi-Unit Structures

Appendix 5. Practice Exercises
You will use the illustrations below during your classroom lesson.
Exercise 1.

Exercise 2.

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Notes

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