Housing Equality & Policy
All Policy & Current Issues
March 9, 2021
But even with the substantial home-equity uptick, Black Americans who bought in 2019 still have a median of $89,000 in equity, much lower than $113,000 for white Americans. People who bought homes in primarily Black neighborhoods in 2019 gained a median $59,000 in home equity last year, compared with $50,000 for people who bought homes […]
February 25, 2021
The fees that sellers pay to buyers’ agents are expected to decline as a federal legal battle ushers in a new era of transparency around real estate commissions. Some home-selling businesses have already started offering lower commission rates. Buyers also stand to benefit, as lower commissions can translate to lower home prices. The typical U.S. […]
February 9, 2021
An analysis of over 220,000 home sales across a 13-year period found no consistent relationship between the addition of low-income housing and changes in nearby home prices in 18 of the 26 metro areas studied. Construction of low-income housing developments has had no consistent impact on the sale prices of nearby homes, according to a […]
February 8, 2021
In order to solve the housing shortage, the Biden administration should spend its affordable housing budget outside of expensive California cities and focus instead on building housing in already affordable places like the Midwest and South. The U.S. currently faces a housing shortage of 2.5 million homes. The number of homes for sale is at […]
February 3, 2021
Amazon’s recent pledge aims to help address the housing affordability problem in certain areas. Even huge amounts of money–like Amazon’s commitment of $2 billion–will only have a minor impact on the share of families who spend more than 30% of their income on rent. The hot housing market is good for homeowners, but it also […]
