The National Association of Real Estate Brokers (NAREB) released its 2022 State of Housing in Black America, finding that “the near-term prognosis for future gains in Black homeownership does not seem positive.”
The report says that rising interest rates and an economy approaching a possible recession have constrained all first-time homebuyers. However, Black homebuyers are particularly challenged to save for downpayment due to, among other factors, earning lower median wages than whites. According to the report, Black communities also suffer disproportionally from climate change because of a lack of resources, outdated housing stock, and crumbling infrastructure resulting from decades of redlining and segregation.
Despite these roadblocks, the report notes some positive trends: Black homebuyers for the first time in more than a decade applied for more conventional mortgage loans than for unconventional loans. Also, the Federal Housing Finance Agency approved the rollout of new, more sophiticated credit-scoring models that will more accurately represent the creditworthiness of Black consumers.
The full report contains NAREB’s recommendations, a summary of the mortgage data, and other insights into this topic.
all right, I’ll be brave – It’s not a race thing, it’s a cultural thing. To paraphrase Obama, “Lets begin with fatherless households…”
Thank you for pointing out the elephant in the room—too bad Obama never took that far enough to effect change.
Fatherless or not, is not that the reason. It’s merely miseducation or the lack thereof about homeownership. Most families don’t even discuss homeownership, plan for it, or care enough to break the cycle. Most poverty-stricken areas only have enough to make ends meet. How do you save for a down payment? We’re coming up with new ways to handle money and credit. We’re building positive relationships with money to be able to save and not buy things of no value. It’s a mindset. It has nothing to do with or without a father being in the household. Does everyone you… Read more »
i am a realtor in Houston i would like to help
I try, but I don’t get it. You will just call it lazy speak, but I call it part of the problem. In my world, there is no “Black America”, just America. That lazy speak divides us. Aren’t you encouraging some bigoted, backward agent to put “Black America” in their place, with the redlining and segregation you mention? Second, when you say “Black home buyers are particularly challenged”, isn’t that stereotyping? Don’t you mean “some black home buyers”? Or even, “a disproportionate amount of Black home buyers”? I get your message, but I don’t like how it is delivered. I… Read more »
Thank you, I sat there reading, thinking; this is so racist. Are we steering maybe? Where is black America? What do more sophisticated credit scoring models have anything to do with the color of your skin?
This racist rhetoric is what divides Americans. Can’t we just talk about Americans? Why must the authors of this report constantly try to separate us? I’m sick of this racist nonsense. We have homebuyers, not black, white, red or green homebuyers. We have home sellers, not black, white, purple or yellow home sellers. We are Americans. ” Black communities also suffer disproportionally from climate change…” Please! Climate change is the problem? What about single parent households? That is clearly the most prevalent monetary and cultural problem facing all families in the United States of America.
“earning lower median wages ”
I note that this report makes no attempt to compare those with similar incomes within racial/ethnic groups. It would be interesting if such a report were to demonstrate that income level and credit score were the dominant considerations for loan denial. I believe that Texas Realtors are completely committed to standing for social justice and racial equality and that’s been the case going back decades.
I’m disappointed NAR and TREC are participating in publishing such a ridiculous, illogical and quite possibly intentionally divisive article. I refuse to sit back and let this author and our NAR & TREC leadership think that this article is acceptable or appreciated or helpful to the Texas realtors and Texas consumer community.
I don’t get this at all. How is climate change affecting black Americans more than anyone else??
An excerpt: ” These communities, particularly Black communities, are disproportionately affected by environmental hazards and severe natural disasters.”
Apparently, hazards are lumped together with global warming. As we see in Ohio, living near to railroad tracks is dangerous; more so than I realized.
Page 54 of the report they linked provides a comprehensive summary of how Black communities have been disproportionately affected by environmental hazards.
Thank you for sharing this report on the state of Black homeownership. I am reviewing the 2022 report you linked. Knowing the racist history of government-sponsored housing policies, I am open to learning about the lasting outcomes of these injustices and how best to move forward in a way that is equitable. It surprises me to see the oppositional comments from professionals in this field who are obviously aware of redlining and discrimination in lending. If you read the report, you will find the answers to your questions. If not, research results are publicly available to you.