Description

COMMUSE identifies housing units with a business (such as a store or barber shop) or medical/dental office on the property.

Note: This variable was discontinued in 2016. See the Comparability section for more information.

Comparability

The universe shifts from year to year, but a "yes" response means the same thing in all years: the unit contains a business and/or a medical/dental office. In 1960, enumerators determined whether this was the case, based on their own observations. In later years, respondents answered the question on their own. The questionnaire for the 1970-1990 censuses noted, "A commercial establishment is easily recognized from the outside; for example, a grocery store or a barber shop. A medical office is a doctor's or dentist's office regularly visited by patients." The questionnaires for the 2000 census, the ACS and the PRCS used the examples of a store, a barber shop, and a medical office to exemplify commercial use.

In the 1970 U.S. census, a house on 10+ acres which also contained a commercial establishment or medical office was coded as a unit on 10+ acres; commercial use cannot be determined for such housing units. Likewise, in the 1970 Puerto Rican census, a house on 3+ cuerdas which also contained a commercial or medical office was coded as a unit on 3+ cuerdas (one cuerda is equal to approximately 0.971 acres); commercial use cannot be determined for such housing units.

In 2016, this variable was discontinued due to questionnaire changes. The 5-year ACS files retain values for data from years 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015. The Census Bureau suggests that users not create estimates using this variable for the ACS 5-year files beginning with the 2016 5-year ACS file.

Universe

Availability

• 2023: --
• 2022: --
• 2021: --
• 2020: --
• 2019: ACS 5yr
• 2018: ACS 5yr
• 2017: ACS 5yr
• 2016: ACS 5yr
• 2015: All samples
• 2014: All samples
• 2013: All samples
• 2012: All samples
• 2011: All samples
• 2010: ACS; ACS 3yr; ACS 5yr
• 2009: All samples
• 2008: All samples
• 2007: All samples
• 2006: All samples
• 2005: All samples
• 2004: All samples
• 2003: All samples
• 2002: All samples
• 2001: All samples
• 2000: All samples
• 1990: All samples
• 1980: All samples
• 1970: All samples
• 1960: All samples
• 1950: --
• 1940: --
• 1930: --
• 1920: --
• 1910: --
• 1900: --
• 1880: --
• 1870: --
• 1860: --
• 1850: --

• 2023: --
• 2022: --
• 2021: --
• 2020: --
• 2019: PRCS 5yr
• 2018: PRCS 5yr
• 2017: PRCS 5yr
• 2016: PRCS 5yr
• 2015: All samples
• 2014: All samples
• 2013: All samples
• 2012: All samples
• 2011: All samples
• 2010: PRCS; PRCS 3yr; PRCS 5yr
• 2009: All samples
• 2008: All samples
• 2007: All samples
• 2006: All samples
• 2005: All samples
• 2000: All samples
• 1990: All samples
• 1980: All samples
• 1970: All samples
• 1930: --
• 1920: --
• 1910: --

Flags

Editing Procedure

COMMUSE (Commercial use)
ACS Years: 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015
ACS editing procedure:
If a person living in a one-family house or in a mobile home (UNITSSTR) has a blank, don't know, refused, or a bad value for COMMUSE (if there is a business on the property), the value of COMMUSE is allocated. The allocated value is a non-missing COMMUSE value of another unit of the same type of building (UNITSSTR) and lot size (ACREHOUS) and in the same geographic unit (it is not specified what level of geography is used). When this happens, the flag will show that the value is allocated (QCOMMUSE).
If a person living in an apartment building or in a boat, RV, van or other non-traditional housing structure (UNITSSTR) has value for COMMUSE, the value of COMMUSE will be replaced with a "Not in universe" value.
Internal ACS variable : BUS