Year Published
2001
Abstract
Recent studies have documented substantially depressed levels of homeownership among
African-American households. While prior analyses have focused largely on racial disparities in
household financial characteristics, few studies have assessed the potential role of location choice
and locational attributes in the homeownership choice decision. This research applies individuallevel Census data from the Los Angeles area to explicitly model the residential location and
tenure choice decisions of African-American households.
Research findings indicate substantial variation across African-American and white
households in the determinants of locational choice among South Central L.A., other parts of Los
Angeles, and Inland Empire (San Bernardino County) areas. The predicted location choice of
white households was overwhelmingly that of suburban areas of Los Angeles County; in contrast,
the typical African-American household was nearly as likely to locate in South Central Los
Angeles as in other parts of the County. Further, the probability of white household moves to
South Central Los Angeles was relatively insensitive to simulated variation in household socioeconomic characteristics and remained throughout at approximately 2 percent. While higher
levels of household income exerted significant positive effects on the likelihood of black moves
to the Inland Empire, the opposite outcome was shown for white households.
Among blacks that move to San Bernardino County or to South Central Los Angeles,
imputation of white economic endowments served to fully close the sizable black-white
homeownership choice gap. However, in other Los Angeles neighborhoods, a sizable
endowment-adjusted homeownership gap was shown to persist. Overall, assessment of variations
in the intra-metropolitan locational and tenure choices of black households indicated several
distinct "pathways" to homeownership among black households in Los Angeles. In so doing, the
analysis accounted for in excess of three-fourths of the gap in homeownership rates between Los
Angeles white and black households.
African-American households. While prior analyses have focused largely on racial disparities in
household financial characteristics, few studies have assessed the potential role of location choice
and locational attributes in the homeownership choice decision. This research applies individuallevel Census data from the Los Angeles area to explicitly model the residential location and
tenure choice decisions of African-American households.
Research findings indicate substantial variation across African-American and white
households in the determinants of locational choice among South Central L.A., other parts of Los
Angeles, and Inland Empire (San Bernardino County) areas. The predicted location choice of
white households was overwhelmingly that of suburban areas of Los Angeles County; in contrast,
the typical African-American household was nearly as likely to locate in South Central Los
Angeles as in other parts of the County. Further, the probability of white household moves to
South Central Los Angeles was relatively insensitive to simulated variation in household socioeconomic characteristics and remained throughout at approximately 2 percent. While higher
levels of household income exerted significant positive effects on the likelihood of black moves
to the Inland Empire, the opposite outcome was shown for white households.
Among blacks that move to San Bernardino County or to South Central Los Angeles,
imputation of white economic endowments served to fully close the sizable black-white
homeownership choice gap. However, in other Los Angeles neighborhoods, a sizable
endowment-adjusted homeownership gap was shown to persist. Overall, assessment of variations
in the intra-metropolitan locational and tenure choices of black households indicated several
distinct "pathways" to homeownership among black households in Los Angeles. In so doing, the
analysis accounted for in excess of three-fourths of the gap in homeownership rates between Los
Angeles white and black households.
Research Category