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(MiamiHerald.com) “To anyone who has walked the streets of Overtown, Liberty City, Wynwood and Little Haiti, there is no denying that these Miami neighborhoods have a vibrant underground economy.

The big challenge always has been quantifying that economy in terms of population and purchasing power.

The problem: Data from the U.S. Census or traditional sources like Claritas don’t tell the full story. They often don’t account for multiple families living in one house or people who work off the books and pay their bills in cash.

Yet, without a true picture of the population and purchasing power, it’s hard to convince developers, retailers and banks there is a strong business case to warrant their investment. It’s one of the many reasons these neighborhoods tend to lack many of the services found in suburban or wealthy urban communities, ranging from grocery stores to banks, movie theaters and chain restaurants.

”In Miami Beach they’ve got everything they need, but we don’t,” said Jafford Tucker, a Miami resident, who regularly takes the bus to the Shoppes at Liberty City. “People don’t want to go too far just to get a shirt.”

Social Compact believes it can provide the data that can persuade more retailers and banks that there’s plenty of people like Tucker eager to shop or do business in their neighborhood.

The Washington, D.C., nonprofit research group last month launched a major research effort designed to quantify the buying power of Miami’s underserved, urban markets. The study, expected to be completed by the end of the year, will cover Overtown, Liberty City, Wynwood, Little Haiti, Model City, Allapattah, Edgewood and Wynwood.

”We’re trying to really change these cities,” said John Talmage, chief executive of Social Compact, whose leaders include executives from some of the country’s largest financial institutions. “You may not see the paradigm shift this year or next. But in five years you will. It’s too big of a market that’s being left untapped.” (more…)

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Contrary to popular belief, many of the inner-cities of America with large minority populations are not all neck-deep in poverty. There is an invisible economy (invisible to the IRS ) that many folks do not take into account when they talk about the inner-city. For example, many beauticians (the good ones) BANK big time. “Contractors” (who oftentimes wind up being a cousin or a cousin’s cousin’s friend) tend to also do well on the side. Because many of these transactions are done in cash, there is no way for the government to know about it (rich folks aren’t the only ones that avoid paying taxes!!). This leaves the impression that poverty is a lot bigger than it what it actually is. The same goes for those that choose to share housing in order to save money to reinvest in other ventures.

To view some of the reports already completed by Social Compact, click here.