Fewer Mortgages for Minority Communities
Brooklyn mortgages dropped 18 percent in 2007, reports the Daily News, in line with the city’s statistics. But it turns out the number of mortgages was chopped in half, or more, in poorer, minority neighborhoods, which are bearing the brunt of the foreclosure crisis — they call it the “tale of two Brooklyns.” “The number…
Brooklyn mortgages dropped 18 percent in 2007, reports the Daily News, in line with the city’s statistics. But it turns out the number of mortgages was chopped in half, or more, in poorer, minority neighborhoods, which are bearing the brunt of the foreclosure crisis — they call it the “tale of two Brooklyns.” “The number of mortgages issued fell by 60% in Brownsville, 58% in Bushwick, 57% in East New York and 45% in East Flatbush,” they write. “Experts say the declines are due to a combination of the drying up of the subprime market and lending discrimination by banks reluctant to make loans — even to qualified buyers — in those neighborhoods.” Now for the other Brooklyn: the number of mortgages rose 48 percent in Brooklyn Heights and Fort Greene; 11 percent in Williamsburg and Greenpoint; and stayed the same in the Slope.
Mortgages Plunge by 50% in Some Minority Neighborhoods [NY Daily News]
Photo by Jimmy Legs.
I have lived in Bushwick most of my life. I moved to Bushwick when I was 3 years old when my Mom bought a building on Wilson ave and Jefferson ave in 1983. I still live here and I took over the building as my Mom moved to PA about 4 years ago. I am so fascinated with Bushwick that I would love to be apart of building it back up again. I remember a lot of crazy events that took place here but theres so many great things now in Bushwick thats going on thats really great. For example you have many Condo’s being built, lots of small shops and boutiques and you have broadway being built up all over again. There is a major real estate booming out here. Most of the drug dealers that were in the 80s have either been taken away or died and most of the new generation growing up are looking forward into making this area become what is use to be. I am currently in Real Estate and I would love to help people invest in this area. Why have people continue to come in and take over when I can help the real natives of Bushwick be apart of the new up bringing of Bushwick. Bushwick is booming, now you have people coming from Manhattan and other areas buying up properties, building new properties and calling parts of Bushwick, East Williamsburg. This was what they were trying to do in the 70s but it backfired into a wild, gang, and drug infested area in the 80s. In the 90s it was struggling for a change and now the change is happending. It took a while and I am happy to see the changes in my neighborhood. If anyone have any questions on the market or even need information on getting financial information dont hesitate to email me at pgilgeours@yahoo.com I am a Banker that works with FHA. Otaining an FHA loan you must show income as opposed to when everyone stated their income getting into adjustable rate mortgages. I can refer you to well trusted Realtors that will help you find an ideal property of your choice in Bushwick. Stay blessed…
“Its all fun and games till some bus driver who bought a 700K two family in East New York on a 30K a year salary starts crying to the Daily News that the big bad bank is going to take his house away.” Xander
Really? Have you actual evidence that this has happened? This post contributes absolutely nothing and reinforces the misperception that all buyers are to blame for the foreclosures. THere was a time when the BANKS actually turned down loan applications because the person was a bad risk….now that has come back in full force…and purely out of self-protection. THe govt dropped the regulation ball and we are ALL paying for it and then some…and all you can do is cry about some mythical bus driver. Shamefully ignorant.
Looks like redlining is back in full force.
The tragedy of this especially in places like Bushwick which was the new “Williamsburg” is that the “qualified buyers” are often not locals and they have been buying up properties often for investment and turning these areas around. Yes gentrification is a double edge sword but it also breathed new life into these neighborhoods.
Redlining in the 1970’s is what allowed many of these homes to fall into the disrepair encountered by new yuppie/hipster owners who are now eagerly renovating (Brownstoners). The perception has been that these previous owners didn’t care and neglected their properties and the truth is that even qualified people in the 1970’s were not given loans.
Also, there is still a lot of ignorance about the high rate of foreclosure. Many of the foreclosures are due to predatory lending, not simply people getting in way over their heads. Many owners are elderly living on a fixed income who sought re-financing as the only way to make repairs on homes that they already owned outright. It is shameful that these have been stolen right out from under them.
Lastly, the refusal to grant loans in these areas to qualified buyers will insure that many of these neighborhoods remain marginalized.The high number of boarded up and abandonned homes invites more crime, devalues neighboring properties and keeps the area economically depressed. We all loose out.
Slick – you’re making me rethink my New Utopia structure I laid out above. It’s undeniable that the working poor contribute to the city… but these terms, “working poor” “lowest socioeconomic classes” “lower middle class” AARGH! They all sound sort of dirty, right?
Forget the Edwardian upstairs-downstairs scheme — I don’t want icky poor people living in my home. It would be better if they were shipped in from a camp on Long Island or New Jersey in appropriate shifts. Or perhaps we can designate Staten Island or a part of Queens as where the workers would live. It could even be free housing provided by the taxes of their… errr… the property owners.
Its all fun and games till some bus driver who bought a 700K two family in East New York on a 30K a year salary starts crying to the Daily News that the big bad bank is going to take his house away.
back in the day, there was also housing designated for specific professions in order to ensure an adequate supply of labor.
As things are now, many of the affordable/low income housing programs are for the lowest socioeconomic classes as opposed to the working poor or lower middle class. However, NY benefits from the working poor or lower middle class, who contribute to the city.
I leave that political hot potato to someone smarter than me to figure out.
If it was grandma’s ma they must of been building em tougher back in those days
Was the barefist fighter your grandma or grandpa? 🙂
Theres over 1 million rent stabilized apartments in NYC. I’ve lived in two of them during my time here, neither was bad (of course there are godawful ones).
I like the Edwardian comment – both of my grandparents’ parents were “in service” as they called it (though apprently one of them supplemented his income with barefist fighting). My understanding is that, as working class jobs went back in the day when people were living hand to mouth, being in service wasn’t such a bad gig. Nowadys of course, the servants quarter’s are rented out to help pay the mortgage.