Homeownership is the cornerstone of the American Dream and, for good reason, home equity is the largest source of wealth for the typical American family. As of the first quarter of 2021, non-Hispanic white households had a homeownership rate of 73.8% compared with a rate of 45.1% for Blacks.
Compare that to home-buying rates in 1920. Then, just a year before the Black neighborhood of Greenwood was destroyed, owning a home was much more difficult for everyone (regardless of race) – down payments of 50% were common and repayment was typically expected within 10 years. And still, the gap in homeownership between Blacks and whites was lower at that time than it is today by nearly 5 percentage points.
While Federal Housing Administration regulations ended many of the difficulties faced by whites, individual and institutional discrimination has barred most Black households from owning their homes. Blacks have also experienced significant financial exploitation in the loan origination and servicing process.
When it comes to homeownership, are Blacks better off today than in 1921, when communities like Tulsa provided vast opportunities to build wealth?
On the surface yes: For Blacks who do own homes, their properties contribute to increasing their wealth (even when incomes are the same between Black owners and renters). They also have greater freedom today than a century ago to locate in communities that may have better access to employment and other…
