News

Black Homeownership Crisis

Jamie Jackson
June 28, 2022

FILE - This April 13, 2019, file photo, shows homes in suburban Salt Lake City. Two studies released Wednesday, June 16, 2021, found that the nation's housing availability and affordability crisis is expected to worsen significantly following the pandemic, likely widening the housing gap between Black, Latino and white households, as well as putting homeownership out of the reach of lower class Americans. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer, File)

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The National Association of Realtors sounds a major alarm warning that a housing affordability crisis is brewing. The homeownership rate for white Americans today is more than 72%, while it’s just 43% for Black Americans. The group says the pandemic made it worse.

They also point to student loan debt being a significant issue. In fact, 41% of Black home buyers had student loan debt, which is higher than any other race. The National Association of Realtors says home ownership is a primary pathway to generational wealth-building and addressing housing affordability can make a difference, including the racial wealth gap.

Rising mortgage rates, a shortage of affordable homes, and homeownership opportunities have limited many middle-class, first-time, and first-generation home buyers.

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Jamie Jackson is an Emmy-nominated television and radio broadcaster who has served American Urban Radio Networks since 2015. He previously covered the Obama and Trump administrations as a White House Correspondent and Pool Reporter for AURN News. Jamie hosted a national PBS television special in 2023 and over the years has worked as a TV news anchor and local NPR host for stations across the country. His work has been honored by numerous organizations, including the NAACP and the Virginia Farm Bureau.