An appraiser is valuing a small apartment building and gathers information on demographics and employment trends. This data would be considered what type?

• A. Specific Data
• B. General Data
• C. Macro Data
• D. Local Data

Answer: (B)

The main idea here is understanding types of data used in market analysis for appraisal. Demographics and employment trends describe the broader market conditions affecting the area, such as how many people live there, what their incomes look like, and whether the local job market is growing or slowing. This information helps assess overall demand and the viability of investing in that market, not the specifics of the subject property itself. That’s why it’s considered general data—it reflects market-wide conditions rather than details about the particular building or its immediate surroundings. If you were looking at the building’s own characteristics (unit mix, rents, vacancies, property condition) or the immediate neighborhood’s specifics, that would be more like specific or local data. And data from a national or regional economy would be macro data, broader than the local market.