LGBT Buyers Fear Discrimination

Members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community say they fear discrimination when buying a home and try to seek LGBT-safe neighborhoods if they were to buy, finds new research from Freddie Mac of more than 2,300 consumers.

Surveyed LGBT community members were largely positive about home ownership. Three-quarters of LGBT renters said they believe owning is a good financial investment, and 72 percent said they want to own a home in the future.

But more than four in 10—or 46 percent—of LGBT renters said they fear discrimination in the home buying process (another 15 percent were unsure if they would). LGBT renters listed price, safety, and an LGBT-friendly location as the most important factors when choosing where to live. And for buying a home, they ranked living in a LGBT-friendly neighborhood as a top priority, after home price and safety.

More LGBT consumers are buying homes but their percentages in the housing market still fall short compared to the rest of the market. Forty-nine percent of LGBT households are likely to own a home, which is considerably lower than the national rate of 64.3 percent, the study finds.

“We fielded this survey to get a better understanding of the current challenges facing the LGBT community, as well as their current housing choices, preferences, experiences and aspirations,” says Danny Gardner, senior vice president of affordable lending and access to credit at Freddie Mac. “What we found was that several factors—including increased mobility, lower marriage and a tendency to live in high-cost urban areas, and fears of discrimination—may be contributing to these lower home ownership rates.”

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