Wayne County Experiences Largest Decrease in African American Homeownership

According to data from the American Community Survey, Saginaw County had the highest percentage of African American homeowners of the Michigan counties with more than 10,000 African American households. In 2000, 54 percent of the adult African American population owned a home in Saginaw County. In 2016, 51 percent of the adult African American population in Saginaw County owned a home; this was equivalent to 13,820 households. Overall, there was a 3 percent decrease between the percentage of African American household owners between 2000 and 2016 in Saginaw County. Ingham County also experienced a 3 percent change between 2000 and 2016, from 38 percent to 35 percent, and Washtenaw County experienced the lowest percentage change at 1 percent. In 2000 in Washtenaw County, 39 percent of the African American population owned a home and in 2016 it decreased to 38 percent. It was Wayne County that had the largest decrease between 2000 and 2016 in the percentage of African American homeowners. In 2000 53 percent of the African American population owned a home and in 2016 that decreased to 42 percent. In total in Wayne County, according to the American Community Survey, there were 303,717 households owned by African Americans in 2000 and in 2016 that decreased to 264,759.

According the Urban Institute, where this data was originally presented, the overall percentage of African American ownership in Michigan decreased from 51 percent in 2000 to 40 percent in 2016. Additionally, it was 45-64 age group that experienced the largest loss in homeownership (18%). While the overall loss of homeownership between 2000 and 2016 can be attributed to the Great Recession, the Urban Institute also found that the rise of land contracts and property tax foreclosures contributed to the loss.