Homeownership among blacks remains far lower than among whites: Subprime mortgage crisis worsens the picture
By Wilhelmina Leigh and Danielle Huff
Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies
Homeownership is an integral part of the American dream. Yet for most African Americans, it is an unrealized dream.
In 2006, fewer than half (48.4 percent) of African American households owned homes. In comparison, 75.8 percent of white households were homeowners.
While homeownership rates among African Americans have increased significantly since 1940, they continue to trail those of non-Hispanic whites by a large margin. The homeownership rate for African Americans in 2000 (46.3 percent) was equivalent to the homeownership rate for whites in 1940 (45.6 percent)!
The subprime mortgage market has been a topic of intense discussion this year. This has been especially true since the August stock market drop and the increased decline in the housing market, both of which were related to the explosive growth of the subprime mortgage market in recent years. This issue is of special concern to African Americans because African Americans are more likely than members of other racial/ethnic groups to have subprime mortgages.
The Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies recently published two briefs addressing the issues of homeownership and subprime lending among African Americans. The first brief, African Americans and Homeownership: Separate and Unequal, 1940 to 2006, gives an overview of homeownership rates and trends among racial/ethnic subpopulations. The brief also lists examples of homeownership-building initiatives offered by governmental and nongovernmental organizations.
The second brief, African Americans and Homeownership: The Subprime Lending Experience, 1995-2007, provides a primer on subprime lending and its effect on African Americans. Additionally, it offers recommendations for further increasing homeownership rates and for taking steps to prevent another subprime mortgage market meltdown from happening again.
What do you think? What more can be done to increase homeownership rates among African Americans? Do you think the white-black gap in homeownership rates can ever be closed completely? What further recommendations would you offer to ameliorate the negative effects of subprime lending on African Americans? What steps can or should be taken by elected officials to help protect African Americans and other groups from being targeted for subprime loans? Should government officials even be involved?
Joint Center
in Economics
|
Post a Comment
|
9 References
References (9)
-
Response: Financial Planning Mortgage AdvisorsEvery adult in the country that has a bank account, who has taken out a loan, who owns a credit card, who pays a bill or who has a mortgage will have a credit file that contains financial information about them. This credit file stores the credit history of what credit ... -
Response: egoldmine.infoAnytown, USA 12345 Re: Account: Dear ABC Collection: I dispute the above- referenced debt. Please verify this debt as required by the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. While this debt is being disputed, you cannot report this debt to the credit reporting agencies. If you have already reported it the credit ...
-
Response: wedingparty.infoDebt Consolidation Loans are not for everyone, you need to take into account every property of the this type of loan, for some people it might be the right thing to do, but sometimes it can be a mistake.
-
Response: newbroker.infoThe second part is the one that's grabbed headlines; the president has dedicated 75 billion toward efforts to prevent foreclosures. Chief among these efforts is a plan to reduce monthly payments for troubled borrowers. For those spending greater than 38% of their income on mortgage payments, up to 43%, the government ...
-
Response: capitalagreement.infoThe Ulster Bank is to pass on the cut to customers with mortgages linked to the standard variable rate and borrowings linked to to the base rate. The bank is defering a decision on its saving rates at the moment.
-
Response: New Loans(If you haven't left a comment here before, you may need to be approved by the site owner before your comment will appear. Until then, it won't appear on the entry. Thanks for waiting.)
-
Response: Diamond LoansGoodness, Crisa, where do you get your uncommon political insider's perspective? Nobody knew about this Bakos connection except those in his "inner circle"... as well/
-
Response: Marketing ApplicationOne way to get the most leverage out of these long- term loans is to take advantage of the lower monthly payments for the first few years, and then refinance to a more conventional 15- or 30- year loan after you gain more financial stability. In that way, you’ ll get ...
-
Response: Non Profit FoundationsThe U. S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Utah was to issue an opinion on the 25 Million Pivotal DIP Financing proposal today, however, the parties asked Judge Boulden to delay announcing her decision until July 3rd. In the meantime, the parties will try to negotiate a Credit Suisse Loan ...
Reader Comments