Hispanic Home Borrowers Losing to Whites in California

Jose Ramos lived the American Dream as a real estate agent who owned two houses in the majority Hispanic city of Santa Ana, California. Almost a decade later, homeownership for the 48-year-old Mexican immigrant is out of reach.

Ramos said the housing crash in 2007 wiped out his income and he lost both homes to foreclosure. Since then, mortgage standards have tightened, and he can’t afford to buy in his neighborhood because investors have bid up prices to almost pre-bust levels.