Racial Discrimination, Segregation, and the Price of Housing

Abstract

This article presents empirical estimates of racial discrimination in the New Haven, Connecticut, housing market. The results are based on over 200 rental units for which there is comprehensive information on the characteristics of the dwellings. Using multiple-regression techniques, we estimate that blacks and whites do pay different amounts for equivalent units. For black female-headed households the markup relative to white males is 16 percent; for black male-headed households, 7.5 percent. Also the work indicates that rents for whites in boundary (integrated) areas are about 7 percent lower than for black households in these areas.