Black Tax and Discrimination In the Housing Market

Black Americans face a difficult predicament. There has been a recent decline of Black  homeownership. From its peak of 49.1 percent in 2004, it fell to 44.9 percent in  2011 (compared to 46.9 percent for Latinos; nearly 59 percent for Asian  Americans; and more than 74 percent for Whites), according to diversitydata.org,  a research project of Brandeis University’s Institute for Child, Youth and  Family Policy. The Black Tax is the greater economic and social cost that society’s ingrained racism forces, black americans to endure. Often the price many Blacks had to pay for home loans was unjustifiably steep. During the last decade study after  study has shown that Black homebuyers were basically forced to accept subprime mortgages far more often than whites if they wished to purchase a house. Those  mortgages, would have higher interest rates and other costs than  conventional, prime mortgages, are used for buyers with substandard credit  ratings. Banks and mortgage  lending institutions forced these loans upon black buyers. These loans contained higher fees for the lender. Even if the black prospective home buyers qualified for  conventional mortgages. The study the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)  used White, Black, Latino, and  Asian-American testers who had the exact same financial credentials found that  subtle discrimination in the housing market remains widespread. “Housing Discrimination Against Racial and Ethnic Minorities  2012,”  Discusses realtors  not showing buyers of color the full  arrange of of homes available  in their price range. But  showing them neighborhoods or  streets with predominantly minority populations, and not offering them financial assistance.