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Minority neighborhoods saw some of the largest gains in home equity, coming from the lowest levels of home equity but seeing the most substantial gains from 2012 to 2018, according to a report from Redfin. Meanwhile, white neighborhoods, despite having the lowest levels of equity gain by percentage, still had the largest gains in absolute dollars. Additionally the home equity gap between white and minority communities expanded to $94,000 in 2018.
“Home prices over the last six years rose most steeply in minority communities, and unlike in past booms when Americans just borrowed more and more money, these price gains led to real increases in wealth for homeowners of color,” said Redfin CEO Glenn Kelman. “But even though homeowners in mostly minority communities had the largest percentage gains in home equity, it was the folks living in mostly white neighborhoods who had the largest dollar gains, just because they had so much more home equity at the beginning of the recovery. This just goes to show that, even as a strong market broadly benefits homeowners, it’s still very hard for people starting with less money ever to catch up. On an absolute-dollar basis, homeowners in minority communities became wealthier, but still fell further behind.”
White communities’ average home equity in 2018 was $348,000, compared to $127,000, representing a $221,000 gain. Minority communities’ average home equity in 2018 was $254,000, compared to $69,000 in 2012, a 265 percent gain, nominally a $185,000 gain.
Redfin also covered mixed race communities, which saw a 199 percent gain in home equity, from $104,000 in 2012 to $311,000 in 2018. Overall, people of all races saw a 199 percent gain in equity in that time frame, from $99,000 to $293,000.
According to Redfin, Riverside, CA is the only place where minority communities posted the largest equity gains in absolute dollars, followed by mixed-race and then white neighborhoods.
Find the complete Redfin Average Home Equity and Equity Gains report for 2012 to 2018 here.
