St. Louis real estate industry reckon with its racist past

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Whites in St. Louis are almost twice as likely as blacks to own a home. Discriminatory practices such as redlining and covenants have long created a dual housing market for white and black families and although these practices are becoming illegal, discrimination against black buyers persists across loan scoring, valuation biases and lack of access to bank loans and mortgages, which widens the racial wealth gap.

Nate Johnson, left, is the chairman of the board of the Metropolitan St. Louis Equal Housing and Opportunity Council. Will Jordan, right, is the organization’s executive director.

Acknowledgment of past and current wrongs came in the form of an apology from the St. Louis Realtors Association in 2022. In September, the organization issued a letter apologizing to area black people for its role in the practice of housing discrimination and the implementation of racist housing. policies for decades.

We have a long history in St. Louis, and quite frankly, nationwide, of real estate agents discriminating against people of color, said Nate Johnson, chairman of the Metropolitan St. Louis board of trustees. Equal Housing and Opportunity Council in St. Louis on the Air. I think it’s really powerful that our association was one of the first associations to come out and say, Hey, we know we’ve done some things wrong, a lot of things wrong, and we’re working to fix that.

For Will Jordan, executive director of the Metropolitan St. Louis Equal Housing and Opportunity Council, real estate agents play an important role in getting families to a place where they can create generational wealth through homeownership.

It’s about creating wealth. These are the same young people that you see on the streets today, that you find problematic. If they had the opportunities based on the wealth that had been built in their families for generations, then you would see them with businesses rather than criminal records, Jordan said. Owner families, the results are completely different for them.

Will Jordan and Nate Johnson join St. Louis on the Air

Johnson joined St. Louis on the Air Thursday alongside Will Jordan to discuss the factors limiting black homeownership in the region and what is being done today to eliminate the disparities.

The association of real estate agents is a good example, and I hope to see other associations, other professional professions [follow suit]Jordan said.

We (EHOC) work a little with the banks without ever apologizing,” he added. “The appraisal industry? No apologies given. I don’t even know if they even take responsibility for some of the things that happened in St. Louis, but I can tell you there’s a big red arrow pointing their way.

Have you been the victim of housing discrimination in Saint-Louis? Email [email protected], or leave us a voicemail at (314) 516-6397, and help inform our coverage.

St. Louis on the Air tells you the stories of St. Louis and the people who live, work and create in our area. The show is produced by Miya Norfleet, Emily Woodbury, Danny Wicentowski, Elaine Cha and Alex Heuer. Avery Rogers is our production assistant. The sound engineer is Aaron Doerr. Send your questions and comments about this story to [email protected].

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