Report Details Racial Inequality in Four Cities

To commemorate the Fair Housing Act's fiftieth anniversary, Josh Green writes, "Trulia and NFHA honed in on four metros—Atlanta, Detroit, Houston, and Oakland, respectively—in an attempt to spotlight cities with a range of geographies and histories with segregation and fair housing."

The report notes that in the places studied, "features like banks, health institutions, full-service grocery stores, and parks are significantly less likely to be located in neighborhoods of color than in white communities. [...] And, equally notably, alternative banking establishments like check-cashing services and payday lenders are significantly more likely to be located in neighborhoods of color."

The disparities can be quite stark. "According to a Trulia rep, one data point in Atlanta was particularly glaring: majority-white tracts have 25.3 healthcare providers for every 10,000 people, versus just 9.8 in majority-black tracts." 

Interestingly, this report found that access to healthy food in majority-white and majority-nonwhite areas was roughly on par.