The rate of Black homeownership in America – now at 41.1 percent, according to 2019 U. S. Census numbers – is even lower than it was when the U. S. Fair Housing Act was signed into law 51 years ago on April 11, 1968.
This means Black homeownership is 32.1 percentage points lower than that of Whites, which stands at 73.2 percent. It also means Black homeownership is 6.3 percentage points lower than that of Latino-Americans, which stands at 47.4 percent.
These are just a few of the facts presented to a recent U. S. Congressional hearing by homeownership advocates. The hearing, held by the House Finance Committee’s Subcommittee on Housing, Community Development and Insurance, was the first modern day hearing of its kind – intended to discover the barriers to homeownership for people of color.