[map via Urban Institute]
The Urban Institute has created a new interactive map to show the changing fortunes of the credit environment. According to a release of data collected under the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act, the volume of lending to different racial and ethnic groups has greatly fluctuated from 2001 to 2012.
The findings conclude that African American and Hispanic borrowers took out a greater share of mortgages just when the housing market traveled to the top, and just when it was the worst time to obtain a loan.
As the market came down and credit standards became more stringent, these same communities were unable to refinance existing loans, or take out new ones. The numbers that support this conclusion: from 2005 to 2012, the share of loans made to these two demographics dropped to 12 percent, from 23 percent.
Explore the map on your own to verify these conclusions.
·A new view of the housing boom and bust [Urban Institute]