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Post Gazette: Hispanics, blacks facing hurdles in homeownership
Blacks and Hispanics are less likely than whites and Asians to apply for a mortgage to purchase a home in the first place, but when they do, they also are much less likely to be approved, according to a joint report by Zillow and the National Urban League.
Blacks and Hispanics are less likely than whites and Asians to apply for a mortgage to purchase a home in the first place, but when they do, they also are much less likely to be approved, according to a joint report by Zillow and the National Urban League.
"A House Divided: How Race Colors the Path to Homeownership" relied on Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data, the Zillow Home Value Index and a survey performed by Ipsos. It discovered a number of instances in which members of minority groups -- particularly blacks and Hispanics -- faced challenges and obstacles in homeownership that differed greatly from what white people experienced.
"The American dream of homeownership is not equally shared by all, even today. Our research shows that minority homebuyers are encountering difficulties that often aren't shared by white homebuyers," said Stan Humphries, chief economist for Seattle-based Zillow, an online real estate database.
"Even after they achieve the dream, they are less likely to see a similar return on their investment."
For starters, while blacks make up 12.1 percent of the U.S. population, they filed 6 percent of all mortgage applications in 2012, according to the report. Hispanics make up 17.3 percent of the population, but filed 9.4 percent of the applications.
In contrast, whites make up 63 percent of the U.S. populations and filed 64.8 percent of mortgage applications in 2012.
