racial wealth gap

Every month millions of Black Americans hand over half of our livelihood to the descendants of those who forcefully brought our ancestors here to work for free. Essentially, America is in the business of charging its captives rent.

Black people were excluded from many of the income and wealth-building programs that helped build the foundation of white Americans’ wealth today.

Too many of us have the misconception that elderly Asian Americans live a charmed life that is financially secure with strong family ties. This isn’t accurate.

Homeowners’ equity—the market value of residential real estate minus the value of home-secured debt—has long been the largest single component of wealth for Black and Latino families. On average during […]

Changes to the tax code, and tax programs that support low-wage earners, will strengthen gains made in the asset-building field.

Comparative income quintiles don’t tell us very much about the material conditions of people’s lives. When someone rises into the top fifth, someone else falls into the bottom fifth.

Last month Wells Fargo, the nation’s largest home mortgage lender and fourth largest bank, agreed to pay at least $175 million to redress blatant discrimination against African American and Hispanic […]

Last week, we asked readers if credit scores were too much of a driver in home loan approval. You answered overwhelmingly that yes, credit scores prevent often worth applicants from […]

Melvin Oliver, vice president for asset building and community development at the Ford Foundation, talks about community development, black and white wealth, and racial inequality.