Real estate researchers looking for detailed demographic and residential lending information – packaged for easy display and graphing by local and metro areas – might find what they are looking for at DataPlace (www.dataplace.org).

DataPlace is a project of KnowledgePlex, a housing and community development mega-resource which is sponsored by the Fannie Mae Foundation.

While many online resources provide population figures, housing statistics and the like, this cutting-edge site is different from the rest in that the user can tailor the data to fit their invididual needs or purpose. Several features – including a “Chart and Table Builder”– allow for side-by-side comparison of states, counties, metro areas, or cities.

“Scatterplots” allow the user to compare places based on two indicators – e.g., Average Family Income to Average Value of Housing Units – within the following categories: housing; income/employment; mortgage; and social/demographic.

The site also includes area profiles and housing news.