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Minnesota Housing News
Tom Crann and Matthew Alvarez

New report highlights racial gaps in homeownership and housing across the state

A photo of the Minneapolis skyline
The North Minneapolis neighborhood pictured in October 2023.
Dymanh Chhoun | Sahan Journal

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A new report shows the wide gaps in home ownership and the cost burden of housing across racial lines.

The report from the Minnesota Housing Partnership looked at rents and homeownership rates in all 134 legislative districts.

“The most significant disparities in this state right now are between the homeownership rates for Black households and white households,” said Gabriela Norton, the research manager for Minnesota Housing Partnership.

The average homeownership rate for white households is 77 percent, she said, adding that the rate has remained “pretty steady over the past several years. And then when you’re looking at the homeownership rate for Black households, that is down to a mere 29 percent.” 

Norton noted that her organization also has seen a decrease in homeownership for Native, Hispanic and Black households during the past year.

The report also shows significant gaps in the cost burden of homeownership — which is when more than 30 percent of household income is spent on housing — with Black households experiencing higher percentages of cost burden compared to their white counterparts.

“We also see a significant cost burden among senior renter households. That has become a problem that is becoming more prevalent, that many senior renter households are paying much more than they can afford for housing,” Norton said.

The Minnesota Housing Partnership published its findings using 2024 Legislative District Profiles. Norton said that while the organization also reports this data by county, researchers analyzed this particular set of numbers to sort through the geographical differences in metropolitan areas.

“We are hoping that these legislative district profiles will be something that community members can bring to their local lawmakers to give them some information about what's going on in their district, and hopefully can affect some positive change in that way,” she said.

Click play on the audio player above to hear the entire conversation.