According to the United for a Fair Economy there is a substantial gap in wealth between different races and ethnic groups. In 2007, the average Latino family’s net wealth was $21,000, for an average African-American family: $17,100 and for the average White family: $170,000.

Examining homeownership in relation to the wealth gap
Home ownership is the most valuable asset for families; it is their financial safety net. The home ownership rate of Latinos and African-Americans was 49 percent compared to 75 percent for Whites. The fact that more Whites own more homes than Latinos and African-Americans is due to past and present racial discrimination.

The Federal Housing Administration policies were key to creating disparities in home ownership. Between 1934 and 1968, the federal government spent $120 billion for homeownership. White households received 98 percent of the funds.

Racial discrimination, in the form of redlining and sub-prime loans, has systematically undermined the ability of people of color to purchase, keep and maintain homes. Unemployment and foreclosures are feeding each other in a growing cycle of economic downturn for everyone, including White families with lower incomes on par with Latinos and African-Americans.

Overcoming hard times
As individual families, we need to get serious about getting help from financial counselors. They can help in assessing our financial condition, pull and review our credit reports, create a crisis budget to build up our savings reserves and prepare an improvement plan of action to weather these financial storms. Simply attending classes is not enough. We need to move from financial literacy to financial capability.

As the nation struggles to rebuild from this economic crisis, national strategies are needed to address this issue with more systemic solutions. The lack of mandates and/or incentives for financial ...