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Race and Home Ownership from the Civil War to the Present

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  • William J. Collins
  • Robert A. Margo

Abstract

We present estimates of home ownership for African-American and white households from 1870 to 2007. The estimates pertain to a sample of households headed by adult men participating in the labor force but the substantive findings are unchanged if the analysis is extended to all households. Over the entire period African-American households in the sample increased their home ownership rate by 46 percentage points, whereas the rate for white households increased by 20 percentage points. Thus, in the long run, the racial gap declined by 26 percentage points. Remarkably, 25 of the 26 point long-run narrowing occurred between 1870 and 1910. Since 1910, both white and black households have increased their rates of homeownership but the long-run growth in levels has been similar for both groups, and therefore the racial gap measured in percentage points was approximately constant over the past century.

Suggested Citation

  • William J. Collins & Robert A. Margo, 2011. "Race and Home Ownership from the Civil War to the Present," NBER Working Papers 16665, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:16665
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. William J. Collins & Robert A. Margo, 2011. "Race and Home Ownership from the End of the Civil War to the Present," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 101(3), pages 355-359, May.
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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • N11 - Economic History - - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics; Industrial Structure; Growth; Fluctuations - - - U.S.; Canada: Pre-1913
    • N12 - Economic History - - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics; Industrial Structure; Growth; Fluctuations - - - U.S.; Canada: 1913-
    • R21 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Household Analysis - - - Housing Demand

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