Nationwide, two of every five Latino adults aged 45 and younger, who don’t currently have a mortgage, are mortgage-ready.
The National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals (NAHREP) has released its annual State of Hispanic Homeownership Report, and the findings paint a picture of a societal demographic poised to play an increasingly impactful role in growing the homeownership rate over the coming years and decades. Among the key takeaways – nationwide, two of every five Latino adults aged 45 or younger, who don’t currently have a mortgage, are mortgage-ready.
Here in Minnesota, Latinos make up just six percent of the population. But this number represents 345,000 people, and it’s up 639 percent since 1990 when this figure was just 54,000 people. And when it comes to current homeownership, 49.5 percent of Minnesota’s Latino households own their own home – slightly higher than the 48.4 percent rate nationally. Of course that’s still quite a bit lower than the 76.9 percent ownership rate for White Minnesota households, so there remains work to be done in pursuit of homeownership equity here.
Another key takeaway in the report is growth in median Latino household income – pegged at $55,000 nationally in 2021. This represents an 8.4 percent increase over 2019. While this may seem pretty remarkable, the report also pegs the income needed to afford the median-priced home nationally in 2021 at $68,000. So affordability remains an obstacle to many in this demographic.
The full NAHREP report is available online here. The Center also produced an episode of its Welcome Home podcast on the topic earlier this month, featuring a discussion with members from NAHREP’s Twin Cities chapter – available here.