Report: How Housing Inequity Shrinks Economic Opportunities

An in-depth examination of housing inequity in the 100 largest metropolitan areas in the United States by Thai Le, Edward Muña, Sarah Treuhaft, and Rasheedah Phillips delves into the “shrinking geography of opportunity” that is putting affordable housing and economic opportunities out of reach for many Americans.

“Not only is there an overall shortage of affordable rental homes, but they are rarely located in ‘high-opportunity’ neighborhoods that have high-quality schools, safe streets, clean air, parks, reliable transit, and proximity to jobs, retail, and services,” the authors write.

In the past, racially discriminatory policies, including redlining, urban renewal, and government-backed home loans (almost exclusively for white homebuyers), created geographic concentrations of opportunity and disadvantage throughout regions. Today, policies that are not explicitly discriminatory yet have racially inequitable impacts (e.g., exclusionary zoning), maintain these patterns of spatial inequality — effectively locking many people of color out of educational and economic opportunity.

The source link includes the full analysis, which concludes that “there is a growing gap in access to affordable housing and high-quality neighborhoods for working-class renters and renters of color.” The authors say that “Reversing the trend of shrinking neighborhood opportunity for low-income renters and ensuring that all residents have access to safe and affordable housing in opportunity-rich neighborhoods is crucial to reversing the racial and economic inequities that prevent equitable, prosperous regions.”