Three-City Study of MTO is a large-scale, mixed-method study focused on three Moving To Opportunity sites: Boston, Los Angeles, and New York. The study was designed to examine key puzzles that emerged in previous MTO research, including the Interim Evaluation, and combines analysis of MTO survey, census, and neighborhood indicator data with new, qualitative data collection.

The family-level data were collected in 2004 and 2005, about 6 to 10 years after families' initial placement through the MTO program and 2 years after the Interim Evaluation data collection. Through in-depth qualitative interviews and family-focused ethnographic field work, we examine the effects of relocating families to lower poverty neighborhoods and beyond.