Demographic trends can paint a vivid picture of a state or local economy, often contributing to changes in a Credit's finances. The CreditScope database includes demographic data compiled from three sources: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), and the U.S. Census Bureau. Census Bureau information is comprised of the Decennial Census of Population and the American Community Survey (ACS), which "surveys a small percentage of the United States to produce yearly estimates on the nation's social, economic, and housing characteristics." Merritt is currently working to expand our demographic data to include seasonally adjusted information as well as Real Gross Domestic Product. Demographic data is available across a broad universe of the database including both Merritt Standard and Merritt Supplemental Credits.
Demographic data must be updated separately from other CreditScope updates. To check the timeliness of the demographic data in the System, select [Maintenance] [Data Updates from Investortools] on the Task Bar. This simple step will show if the System's demographic data is "up-to-date". If the demographic data is "out-of-date," please work with your IT department to incorporate the demographic data update into your weekly data update process. Investortools can assist your IT department with this procedure.