Washington, DC – Today, the National Community Reinvestment Coalition (NCRC) released an analysis of home purchase lending in Milwaukee, St. Louis, Minneapolis, and the surrounding areas. The analysis reveals deep racial disparities in mortgage lending in Milwaukee.
“This report clearly shows the lack of mortgage lending in low- and moderate-income neighborhoods and predominantly minority neighborhoods,” said NCRC’s President and CEO John Taylor. “These neighborhoods are lending deserts. Without access to responsible mortgage credit and the opportunity to become a homeowner, the ability for working people to build wealth is severely curtailed. ”
“Until our financial institutions make a full and genuine commitment that creditworthy borrowers, regardless of their skin color, will be able to access responsible credit, the economies in these neighborhoods will continue to deteriorate, and we will continue to have the circumstances you see in Milwaukee, St. Louis, Baltimore, and elsewhere.”
“The future of the Milwaukee region, where one-third of the residents are people of color, is tied very closely to ensuring opportunities for communities of color,” said Bethany Sanchez, Director of Fair Lending at the Metropolitan Milwaukee Fair Housing Council. “Lenders and policymakers must take action to ensure that every credit-worthy borrower has equal access to fairly priced credit. Without that access, predators and scammers fill the gap, targeting their fraudulent and discriminatory lending practices on credit-worthy borrowers.”
Key findings in Milwaukee:
- The City of Milwaukee is the third most segregated major city in U.S.
- Both the City and its Metropolitan Statistical Area display signs of extensive segregation.
- The loan market favors white applicants. Whites represent 70 percent of the population of the Metropolitan Statistical Area, yet received 81 percent of the loans. African Americans are 16 percent of the population yet only received four percent of the loans.
- Loans in the Metropolitan Statistical Area are heavily concentrated in majority white and middle- and upper-income neighborhoods.
- In the City, the areas with a higher percentage of white residents also had a higher likelihood of seeing mortgage activity.
- It is difficult for qualified borrowers of any race to secure credit in high-poverty, hyper-segregated areas.
Click here to see the full report.
About NCRC
NCRC and its grassroots member organizations create opportunities for people to build wealth. We work with community leaders, policymakers and financial institutions to champion fairness in banking, housing and business development.