Dare To Ask Talk And News About Our Differences - This topic has 8 replies, 9 voices, and was last updated 25 years, 5 months ago by
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A Realtor I’ve known for years confirms that many whites refuse to knowingly buy a house from a black if they intend to live in the house instead of hold it as an investment. He noted that this practice is less rampant today than several years ago. I know of one black family that claims to have lost a sale when an anxious potential white buyer visited the property and realized the owner was black. The prospective buyer apparently refused to even enter the house. Why would a white buyer feel this way?
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Name : Floyd L., Gender : M, Race : Black/African American, Age : 59, City : Memphis, State : TN, Country : United States, Education level : Over 4 Years of College,Some white people are racists, and if their hatred is so strong against blacks, this would be a reason for them to not purchase a home – just as blacks who are racist against whites and have such hatred against whites will not buy a home in a predominantly white neighborhood. I live in a predominantly white neighborhood, and yes, neighbors have commented that if a black family were to move in on their block, their home would be up for sale. I feel very strongly against segregation and racism, but realize that it is still a force in today’s world. Certain neighborhoods in the Chicago area do attempt to create an environment of racial unity and non-descrimination (Oak Park is an example), but typically, the neighborhoods here are very segregated. One reason I can think of is that predominantly white neighborhoods that at one time flourished and were kept up very well have deteriorated, and the property values have diminished once an element of destructive behavior/black gang violence unfolded.
Being a Chicago native and having a family background here since the early 1900s, I can understand this opinion. Certain predominantly black neighborhoods in this region include deteriorated housing, boarded-up windows, garbage, violence, gang activity, drugs, etc., and this is what is seen through our eyes when we enter a black urban neighborhood. This same neighborhood was at one time safe to walk in at night, well-maintained and well-managed. The before-and-after pictures are drastic and saddening.
To be honest, many of the predominantly white neighborhoods are not gang-ridden or deteriorated, are well-kept and maintain a much lower crime rate. Perhaps the fear of an area being disrespected and having it decline into a degenerate environment is what fuels this situation.
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Name : Linda22697, Gender : F, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 26, City : Chicago, State : IL, Country : United States, Occupation : Nurse, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,I have noticed several questions about race and housing. At first I thought people were being overly sensitive, saying that white people wont buy a house from a black family or that when black families move into a neighborhood the property values go down. I have never encountered this in my life, but after reading people’s responces I realize that things are very different in other parts of the country. I have lived in the SF Bay Area and the central coast of California all my life, and I have always lived in fairly diverse neighborhoods. There is so much cultural diversity here that there isn’t a lot of segrigation in neighborhoods. I know that racism exists here also, but I guess it just isn’t as prevalent as in other areas of the country.
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Name : Jacqueline-C21013, Gender : F, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 26, City : San Jose, State : CA, Country : United States, Occupation : Engineer, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,Given the nature of this situation, it doesn’t seem to me to be a concern about the quality of the neighborhood, as suggested by Linda in Chicago. Due to the fact that the concern only arises when the families plan to live in the home formerly owned by a black family, I think it’s probably a matter of crime. Many white people who are racist against blacks perceive all blacks to be degenerates and criminals. I suspect that the white families probably feared that the black families would keep copies of the house keys and come back later to rob the house.
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Name : Mike20421, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Christian, Age : 20, City : Virginia Beach, State : VA, Country : United States, Occupation : Student, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,It seems to me that this question and answer is quite an old one. Could part of the answer be so simple as: whites expect or want us to keep up the neighborhood just like they did, so therefore, SCREW THEM, we will do it the way WE want to. Which would be the opposite of the way it had been done, which would be trashing or not caring for the asthetics of the area they live in? I realize that there is so much more to it than that, but could this be a rebellious part of their minds surfacing? It seems to me that most people of any culture would want nice, clean, safe neighborhoods to live in.
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Name : trish, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, City : Detroit, State : MI, Country : United States, Occupation : medical diagnostics, Education level : Technical School,The senarios you describe for Chicago bear no relations to those underlying the original question which was motivated by the observation that many middle to upper income whites, looking for housing in middle to upper income, stable, predominately white neighborhoods refuse to purchase an otherwise very desirable home when it is realized that the home is owned by a black. There are no issues of neighborhoods in transition, no erosion of property values through white flight or properties being put up for rent without any continuing landlord investment in upkeep, nor crime nor any of the negatives you conjecture. Everything about the neighborhoods and homes is appealing to the white buyer until he/she realizes that the home is owned by a black The attitude appears to be much deeper than your explanation suggests and there is certainly no more of a basis for holding blacks responsible for whites having this attitude than blacks are responsible for white racism itself.
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Name : Floyd L., Gender : M, Race : Black/African American, Age : 59, City : Memphis, State : TN, Country : United States, Education level : Over 4 Years of College,I’m afraid the answer to this question is even more invideous than the fear of violence, etc. suggested by Linda. I have a friend who rents out her $400,000 house for the week or so that a prestigious golf tournament comes to her town. She makes sure to remove pictures, books, any traces that a black family normally lives there so that the rich whites renting the house won’t be offended or uncomfortable knowing the owner is black. This phemonenon has nothing to do with poor neighborhoods or fear of violence. Some white people simply do not want to knowingly live in a house previously occupied by a black family. Frankly, I don’t even want to try to uncover the source of this visceral prejudice. (Regentrification provides the only exception I’ve seen.)
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Name : Barbara, Gender : F, Race : Black/African American, Age : 44, City : Atlanta, State : GA, Country : United States, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Upper middle class,I am a part-time realtor and full-time attorney dealing in realty, and I found Linda’s response to be quite insightful. Some white families, upon discovering that the homes they were interested in were previously occupied by black or hispanic people, infer a trend towards the entire neighborhoods becoming largely black or hispanic; unfortunately, contemporary urban history supports the further implication of increased crime and lowered property values. These historical statistics might in turn dissuade future potential buyers, thereby feeding a vicious cycle. Further, I must question the source of Barbara’s conclusions in her response. In general, I advise all my clients to remove any personal property indicative of the residents’ character prior to renting, assigning, etc. to unknown persons. It is simply good business to maintain a neutral (generally simple/bland) environment so as not to offend anyone’s taste; I call it the elevator music principle. Items of cultural, religious, or racial nature are certainly personal items indicative of certain tastes and are usually not considered neutral. Frankly, I am Jewish but I would certainly not leave a menorah lying around on the mantle for those who wish to rent my place.
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Name : Curtis-Leatherman, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Bisexual, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Jewish, Age : 34, City : Albany, State : NY, Country : United States, Occupation : Attorney/ Realtor, Education level : Over 4 Years of College,The scenarios Linda described for Chicago bear little or no relation to the observations underlying the original question – that many middle- to upper-income whites, looking for housing in middle- to upper-income, stable, predominantly white neighborhoods, refuse to purchase an otherwise very desirable home when it is realized that the home is owned by a black. These are not neighborhoods in transition, there is no erosion of property values through white flight or properties being put up for rent without any continuing landlord investment in upkeep, nor is there crime or any of the negatives Linda conjectured. Everything about the neighborhoods and homes is appealing to the white buyer until he/she realizes the home is owned by a black. The attitude is thus much deeper than Linda’s explanation suggests, and there is certainly no more of a basis for holding blacks responsible for whites having this attitude than there is for holding blacks responsible for white racism itself.
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Name : Floyd L., Gender : M, Age : 59, City : Memphis, State : TN, Country : United States,
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