Biden Administration Takes on Racial Disparities in Home Valuations
Federal agencies plan to hold industry players more accountable for bias in appraising homes owned by people of color.
A new plan from a U.S. interagency task force seeks to end racial bias in the home appraisal industry.
Photographer: Luke Sharrett/BloombergWhen Jacquelyn and Cassius Priestly prepared for an appraisal of their home, they knew that they wouldn’t be able to “whitewash” it by taking down any pictures of themselves or other African-American family members — because they lived in Prince George’s County, Maryland, which is predominantly Black. But such “whitewashing” is what many Black homeowners resort to, because of an understanding that any signifiers of Black ownership could lead to an undervaluation of the property by appraisers.
The $1.2 million appraisal the couple initially received surprised them, said Jacquelyn Priestly, speaking at the White House Wednesday with U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Marcia L. Fudge and Domestic Policy Advisor Susan Rice, because it was significantly lower than what it had cost to construct the house, $1.7 million. When they later drove by a house that appeared comparable to theirs – same square footage, same amenities, same number of bedrooms – but was owned by white residents, they saw it had sold for $2.4 million, twice as much as their house was appraised for.