April 8, 2025
Racial Inequality in Homeowner Proximity to Appraisers in the United States
The Population Association of America 2025 Annual Meeting starts on Thursday, April 10. The Survey Research Center is well represented – see the full schedule of researchers. We will be posting some highlights of the presentations this week.
Racial Inequality in Homeowner Proximity to Appraisers in the United States
There is growing concern about discrimination in the home appraisal process, contributing to the systematic devaluation of homes owned by racial minorities. One possible mechanism driving this discrimination is that home appraisers do not live in the areas where racial minority homeowners reside.
To test this mechanism, Joe LaBriola (Survey Research Center) & Steve Tomkowiak (Fair Housing Center of Metropolitan Detroit) used data from a national appraiser registry and the American Community Survey to analyze the locations of all active real estate appraisers in relation to the racial composition of the areas they cover. Their findings reveal that Black, American Indian, and Hispanic homeowners have significantly fewer appraisers living nearby compared to the average homeowner. Conversely, White and Asian homeowners tend to have more appraisers in their vicinity.
LaBriola & Tomkowiak also found substantial regional differences: Black homeowners in many Mid-Atlantic and New England states face a particularly low proximity to nearby appraisers.
These findings highlight how the racial segregation of homeowners from the workers who appraise their homes might contribute to racial inequalities in housing and wealth.
Saturday, April 12, 8:00-9:15am, Magnolia Room
https://myumi.ch/bVZx6