Karen Duffin

They'd seen this data that showed a pattern. People who are rising from the bottom income bracket to the top income bracket aren't just randomly scattered across the country. They're clustered. And your chances of escaping poverty vary widely depending on which cluster you're in. So Nathan digs in deeper. He's starting to look at families who moved into higher mobility neighborhoods.

They'd seen this data that showed a pattern. People who are rising from the bottom income bracket to the top income bracket aren't just randomly scattered across the country. They're clustered. And your chances of escaping poverty vary widely depending on which cluster you're in. So Nathan digs in deeper. He's starting to look at families who moved into higher mobility neighborhoods.

Like, let's say you have two kids and you move them to this better neighborhood and one of your kids is four when you move and the other one is eight.

Like, let's say you have two kids and you move them to this better neighborhood and one of your kids is four when you move and the other one is eight.

Like, let's say you have two kids and you move them to this better neighborhood and one of your kids is four when you move and the other one is eight.

Where you live matters for whether you have a shot at achieving the American dream, which sounds terribly obvious. But that contradicts what Moving to Opportunity found, that huge HUD study.

Where you live matters for whether you have a shot at achieving the American dream, which sounds terribly obvious. But that contradicts what Moving to Opportunity found, that huge HUD study.

Where you live matters for whether you have a shot at achieving the American dream, which sounds terribly obvious. But that contradicts what Moving to Opportunity found, that huge HUD study.

Nathan starts to map income tax data from the actual MTO participants. And this more precise MTO data confirms the pattern that they saw nationally. In fact, the data is so strong that they can say the new neighborhood actually caused the person's economic improvements. That's how much a change of address mattered.

Nathan starts to map income tax data from the actual MTO participants. And this more precise MTO data confirms the pattern that they saw nationally. In fact, the data is so strong that they can say the new neighborhood actually caused the person's economic improvements. That's how much a change of address mattered.

Nathan starts to map income tax data from the actual MTO participants. And this more precise MTO data confirms the pattern that they saw nationally. In fact, the data is so strong that they can say the new neighborhood actually caused the person's economic improvements. That's how much a change of address mattered.

But they also start to realize that it really only mattered for a subset of the MTO participants, only for kids who were younger than 13 years old when they moved. And this explains why HUD missed this outcome. Nathan was looking at the data in 2014. HUD had last looked at this data six years before that, in 2008.

But they also start to realize that it really only mattered for a subset of the MTO participants, only for kids who were younger than 13 years old when they moved. And this explains why HUD missed this outcome. Nathan was looking at the data in 2014. HUD had last looked at this data six years before that, in 2008.

But they also start to realize that it really only mattered for a subset of the MTO participants, only for kids who were younger than 13 years old when they moved. And this explains why HUD missed this outcome. Nathan was looking at the data in 2014. HUD had last looked at this data six years before that, in 2008.

Those younger kids had now grown up, started earning money, started producing income tax data, and they were finally grown up enough now for the data to reveal itself. And what the data was saying was that housing had been hope. Even though they had spent 14 years on this study, they had just counted it out too early.

Those younger kids had now grown up, started earning money, started producing income tax data, and they were finally grown up enough now for the data to reveal itself. And what the data was saying was that housing had been hope. Even though they had spent 14 years on this study, they had just counted it out too early.

Those younger kids had now grown up, started earning money, started producing income tax data, and they were finally grown up enough now for the data to reveal itself. And what the data was saying was that housing had been hope. Even though they had spent 14 years on this study, they had just counted it out too early.

It's so crazy how just by happenstance, kind of, you guys were studying this at a moment where you could actually see that.

It's so crazy how just by happenstance, kind of, you guys were studying this at a moment where you could actually see that.

It's so crazy how just by happenstance, kind of, you guys were studying this at a moment where you could actually see that.