Hispanic homeowners are more likely than people of other races to get financial help from relatives or friends to make their housing payments, according to a recent Redfin report.
Redfin reported a survey of homeowners during the first week of June found 52 percent of Hispanic homeowners lived with family or friends without paying rent to save for housing costs, versus 39 percent of Black respondents and 38 percent of white respondents. Also, 47 percent of Hispanic homeowners reported have adult relatives living in their home, compared with 39 percent of Black homeowners and 27 percent of white homeowners.
“Hispanic people in the U.S., especially those who are undocumented, tend to have less access to credit and higher debt compared to other racial or ethnic groups, making them more dependent on support from family to buy a home,” Redfin economist Sebastian Sandoval-Olascoaga said in a release. “With those limitations, support from family and social networks, such as living with family or friends without paying rent, allows Hispanic people to save money for a down payment or monthly mortgage costs. That ability to rely on family is one of multiple reasons why the Hispanic homeownership rate is steadily rising.”
The Hispanic homeownership rate has increased faster than the rate for white or Black Americans over the last six years, according to Redfin, with 50.1 percent of Hispanic or Latino Americans owning their home in 2020, up from 45.4 percent in 2014.
Hispanic homeowners also are more likely than people of other races to have made financial sacrifices to afford their first home, according to the report, which found 44 percent of Hispanic homeowners worked longer hours, 39 percent took an extra job and 38 percent drove an older car. Only 10 percent of Hispanic homeowners reported making no sacrifices to buy their first home, compared with 23 percent of white homeowners.
“For many Hispanic Americans, making social or personal sacrifices is a necessity if they want to buy a home,” Sandoval-Olascoaga said. “That’s especially true this year, as Hispanic people were more likely than people of other races to lose their jobs due to the pandemic. Plus, undocumented immigrants are unable to access financial help from the government and may have to rely on family, adding to the need for Hispanic families to make economic sacrifices.”