Can Roommates’ Paychecks Be Combined Into One “Household Income” Number?

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BSF-0220 · Behind the Numbers · Evidence as of: 2021

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The Fact

Yes. Census household income can include the income of unrelated people sharing a housing unit, including roommates and lodgers, depending on the survey definition.

What This Means

A household-income number is not automatically the income of one nuclear family.

Sources

  1. U.S. Census Bureau, American Housing Survey Subject Definitions. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/ahs/2021/2021%20AHS%20Definitions.pdf
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