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September 2023 » thefivestar.com 93 J O U R N A L September 2023 priced out. Values surged in Sun Belt metros including Austin, Phoenix, and Las Vegas because scores of remote workers moved in. Now, home values in those areas are coming back down to earth. "Occasionally, a special house will get multiple offers, but that's not the norm in Austin anymore," local Redfin Premier Real Estate Agent Carmen Gioia said. "Buyers are shopping but taking their sweet time, in part because there's so much inventory. I'm warn- ing my sellers that it could take a few weeks to sell, even if their home is priced well." In dollar terms, Los Angeles saw the big- gest decline in aggregate home value, posting a $152.6 billion year-over-year decline in June. It was followed by Oakland, California (-$85.8 billion), Seattle (-$82.7 billion), Phoenix (-$58.4 billion), and San Francisco (-$57.5 billion). However, according to Redfin, homes in relatively affordable markets posted the biggest gains in home values. The value of homes in Little Rock, Arkansas, climbed 8.8% year over year to $63.7 billion in June—a bigger increase than any other metro. Next came Camden, New Jersey (8.7%), Milwaukee (8.5%), Wilmington, Delaware (8.5%), Bridge- port, Connecticut (8.3%), Greenville, South Carolina (7.8%), Hartford, Connecticut (7.6%), Charleston, South Carolina (7.2%), Greens- boro, North Carolina (7.2%), and Columbia, South Carolina (7.1%). In dollar terms, Atlanta saw the biggest jump in aggregate home value, posting a $40.1 billion year-over-year increase in June. It was followed by Boston ($33.4 billion), Miami ($30.3 billion), New Brunswick, New Jersey ($22.6 billion), and Montgomery Coun- ty, Pennsylvania ($21.4 billion). In other news proffered by Redfin, the total value of U.S. homes owned by millen- nials rose by 2.9% year over year to $5 trillion in the first quarter of 2023; a bigger increase than any other generation. That is the second quarter in a row that millennials have held more value than the Silent Generation, on a revised basis. The value of homes owned by the Silent Generation fell 11.4% to $4.7 tril- lion. Meanwhile, the value of homes owned by Generation X dropped 0.7% to $13.4 tril- lion, and the value of homes owned by baby boomers was flat, at $18 trillion. BLACK HOMEBUYERS STILL FACING HIGHER MORTGAGE DENIAL RATES W hile undoubted racial dispar- ities in housing persist, Black Americans often face significant homeownership barriers, including lenders denying their mortgage applications at high- er rates than the overall population. According to a new LendingTree analysis of the 2022 Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA), data finds that the share of Black homebuyers that are denied mortgages is nota- bly higher—approximately 1.6 times higher. The purchase mortgage denial rate for Black homebuyers across the 50 largest U.S. metros is an average of 5.30 percentage points higher than the denial rate for the overall mortgage borrower population. Key findings of LendingTree analysis of 2022 HMDA data includes: » On average, 14.44% of Black homebuyers are denied a mortgage, compared to 9.14% across the overall population. » Buffalo, New York; Raleigh, North Caroli- na; and Boston have the largest percentage point differences between the denial rates for Black borrowers and the overall bor- rower population. » Denial rates for Black borrowers are high- est in Miami, Detroit, and New Orleans. They are the lowest in Salt Lake City; Kan- sas City, Missouri; and Minneapolis. » Though denial rates for Black borrowers can vary across the nation's 50 largest metros, they're higher than 10% in all but one—Salt Lake City, with a denial rate of 9.24%. While racial barriers still pose a chal- lenge for Black homeowners nationwide, the spread between denial rates for Black applicants and the overall population of applicants decreased from 2021 to 2022. The average spread was 5.59 percent- age points in 2021, slightly higher than 5.30 percentage points in 2022. From 2021 to 2022, the denial rate for Black borrowers across the country's largest metros decreased from an average of 16.35% to 14.44%. The Top 10 Metros with the Largest Spread Between Mortgage Denial Rates for Black Borrowers and the Overall Population: 1. Buffalo, New York 2. Raleigh, North Carolina 3. Boston 4. San Francisco 5. New Orleans 6. Austin, Texas 7. Milwaukee 8. Miami 9. Chicago 10. Indianapolis The Top 10 Metros with the Smallest Spread Between Mortgage Denial Rates for Black Borrowers and the Overall Population: 1. Salt Lake City 2. San Antonio 3. Houston 4. Riverside, California 5. San Diego 6. Baltimore 7. San Jose 8. Louisville, Kentucky 9. Birmingham, Alabama 10. Atlanta Across Buffalo, New York; Raleigh, North Carolina; and Boston, the denial rate for Black borrowers is an average of 8.89 percent- age points higher than the overall mortgage denial rate. Their respective denial rates for Black borrowers of 18.43%, 15.89%, and 16.16% are higher than those in most of the nation's other largest metros. In Miami, Detroit, and New Orleans, denial rates for Black borrowers are the highest. They are the lowest in Salt Lake City, Kansas City, Missouri, and Minneapolis. Across Miami, Detroit, and New Orleans, the average denial rate for Black borrowers is 20.70%—more than double the average denial rate of 10.19% across Salt Lake City, Kansas City, and Minneapolis. While the reasons behind the dispro- portionately high denial rates among Black homebuyers can be difficult to define, per- sistent, various factors continue to contribute to the racial disparities felt by borrowers across the country.