Hispanic Homeownership on the Rise

REALTOR® Magazine Online
According to the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute, 49.7 percent of U.S. Latinos owned their homes as of March 2005—up from a rate of 46.1 percent in September 2003.

The number is projected to reach 60 percent by the end of the decade, based on a study conducted by the organization's Hispanic Ownership, A Growing American Reality imitative. The research found that the gains in Hispanic homeownership were facilitated by the introduction of innovative mortgage-finance options as well as greater dissemination of information on assistance available to low- and moderate-income applicants from local and state governments.

Also contributing to the higher Latino homeownership rate, according to the study, is the mortgage industry's move to employ more bilingual and culturally sensitive housing professionals.

Still, to bring more Latinos into the sphere of ownership, the study concluded that borrowing costs will need to remain affordable; Hispanics will need to increase their levels of population, income and education; and the housing industry will need to accurately gauge creditworthiness of Latino borrowers.