Our House D.C.: Mortgage Lending Disparities Limit the Rate of Black homeownership in D.C.

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In this issue, our feature story, “Mortgage Lending Disparities Limit the Rate of Black Homeownership in DC,” was written by Antoine Thompson, the former national executive director of the National Association of Real Estate Brokers. In the informative piece, Antoine details why the homeownership gap persists and why Black homeowners are twice as likely to be denied mortgages here in the District.

Aja Beckham, a writer for The Washington Informer, also provides an update, titled "Berryville Planning Commission Halts Demolition, Unanimously Votes To Seek More Input on Historic Homes Owned By Formerly Enslaved Blacks," on her recent story about the descendants of twenty-four formerly enslaved Blacks in Virginia who inherited homes purchased in 1870 and are organizing against blight removal plans by city officials

The Our House D.C. Newsletter is an important education and community resource tool for current and future District homeowners and I encourage you to subscribe, share with your family, friends, co-workers, and neighbors and encourage that they also subscribe.

Austin R. Cooper, Jr., Managing Editor

Mortgage Lending Disparities Limit the Rate of Black homeownership in D.C.

Jamal and Ashley Smith (homebuyers) and Lledon Stokes (Real Estate Agent) / Photo courtesy Antoine M. Thompson

By Antoine M. Thompson

Special to Our House DC, The Washington Informer

The road to financial power and prosperity is paved with homeownership. Nationally, over 70% of Black wealth is tied to homeownership.

In 2020, after the death of George Floyd, there were months of protests in D.C. and across the country. The protests also fostered conversations around the connections between issues of policing and economics, education, housing, and equity. Americans of all races began to demand that the institutions with which they spent money and did business go on record with their commitment to racial justice.

While justice in the courts became a rallying cry against police misconduct and brutality, the fight for racial equity initiatives and policies further took on a renewed purpose. Major corporations including Microsoft, PayPal, Facebook, JP Morgan Chase, Bank of America, Walmart, and many others pledged to invest millions and billions of dollars in racial equity initiatives.

Unfortunately, two years later, these investments have done little to move the needle upward for the rate of homeownership for Black Americans and Black residents of the District.

Homeownership Gap Persists

According to census data from Prosperity Now, the Black homeownership rate in D.C. is 35.2%, compared to the white homeownership rate of 50.3%. This gap stands in stark contrast to the neighboring Black communities in Prince George’s County, Maryland, where the rate of Black homeownership sits at 61.1%. Because of these vast disparities in homeownership, Black households in D.C. are three times more likely to have zero wealth.

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The Our House D.C. Newsletter, sponsored by The Washington Informer, is an engagement platform for Black D.C. residents to read about homeownership challenges and solutions and gain insights to project and preserve their homes, particularly in Wards 7 and 8.

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More Stories: April 11, 2022

Bowser Administration Launches Black Homeownership Strike Force

D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser announced Thursday the formation of a Black Homeownership Strike Force that will develop recommendations on how to keep longtime African-American homeowners in the city.

Community Conversation with the D.C. Office and Tax Revenue

The D.C. Office of Tax and Revenue (OTR) and The Washington Informer led a virtual community conversation to inform D.C. homeowners about property tax assessments and assistance ahead of the tax payment due date on March 31.

Advisory Neighborhood Commission Redistricting Not Without Drama

The redrawing of the District’s advisory neighborhood commission and single-member district boundaries has moved out of the hands of the residents who participated in ward task forces and into those of the city council but not without political drama.

Update to previous story: Berryville Planning Commission Halts Demolition, Unanimously Votes To Seek More Input on Historic Homes Owned By Formerly Enslaved Blacks

Descendants of formerly enslaved Blacks advocated for more time and resources to preserve inherited homes during a Berryville Planning Commission public hearing last month.

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