Black and Latino Homeowners Pay More Than Whites

Matt Bevilacqua reports on a new study from the National Bureau of Economic Research:

Looking at more than 2 million home sales between the years 1990 and 2008, the report found that blacks and Latinos paid anywhere from 1 to 5 percent more than their white counterparts. These were for homes of comparable quality and within the same neighborhoods in four major metropolitan areas: Chicago, Baltimore-Washington, D.C., San Francisco and Los Angeles.

According to the report, a minority family’s income, wealth and access to credit had little to do with the higher prices they paid for homes. And outright racism on the part of sellers didn’t play the obvious role that one might think.

The report explains this conundrum in detail: "[A]ny disadvantage that black and Hispanic buyers face when purchasing homes disappears when it comes time to sell. While certainly not conclusive, this pattern suggests that the relative inexperience of black and Hispanic buyers, due to the historically lower rates of home ownership, may contribute to the higher prices that they initially pay upon entering the market."

Steve Clowney