GROUNDED SOLUTIONS NETWORK | HomeKeeper
What Does the Data Mean Anyway? When we built HomeKeeper, we set out not only to develop a cloud-based application that would make the day-to-day job of managing an affordable homeownership easier (see story on P. 28), but also to create a tool that would collectively measure the impact of homeownership programs nationwide.
The HomeKeeper National Data Hub does just that. As organizations track their daily housing activities, HomeKeeper automatically pulls this data into a centralized hub of nationwide housing information. Using the HomeKeeper National Data Hub dashboard, organizations can view sector-wide reports with benchmarking data that allows them to compare program performance to their peers; and the public—including policymakers, researchers and policymakers—can view aggregated sector data and gain valuable insights to improve affordable housing programs in all corners of the U.S.
Standardizing a Sector, One Apple at a Time When Grounded Solutions first began developing HomeKeeper, there were no standard data collection practices or definitions, and programs measured outcomes in different ways. We knew it wouldn’t be enough to just create an annual survey or national portal for programs to report impacts. Given the diversity of programs and data practices, doing so would have been a lot like comparing apples to oranges.
Tiffany Eng, Director of HomeKeeper Tiffany leads the development, marketing and support of HomeKeeper and its National Data Hub. She is passionate and actively involved in creating family friendly housing in the Bay Area and beyond. Connect with Tiffany NOW> 30
Our first step was to develop a standardized way to manage and collect housing data across the sector. We led a year-long process with program staff, industry stakeholders and researchers from around the country to identify the types of data that HomeKeeper would collect and to determine how this data would be reported to HomeKeeper users and the public. Through this process, we established a standardized list of data fields, data-management practices and shared program performance indicators that were integrated into the HomeKeeper program. By incorporating these standards into their daily program operations, users could align their data collection practices with other programs. For example, Homekeeper now standardizes the way users track homeowner demographics and developed a system for certifying applicant income and eligibility. It also allows programs to input and track market rate values and affordable restricted prices over time.