T
he U.S may be a free land where most people come to chase their dreams but at the same time it comes with a lot of wonders. Besides the racial disparities that are deeply rooted in the land, gender disparities are there too especially in the housing industry. This follows after it was recently established that even in the 21st century, women in some parts of the US pay more for mortgages than men when buying a house. Own Up, a mortgage comparison site, analyzed Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) data and found out that women pay more for mortgages in 49 out of the 50 US states. Alaska is the only exception. On the other hand, single women in Mississippi paid an average of 3.47% on a 30-year conventional fixed-rate mortgage in 2019, while single men on average paid 3.37%, according to data from HMDA. This means that single women in Mississippi paid roughly $7,000 more in mortgage payments compared to single men over the lifespan of the loan. According to Patrick Boyaggi, CEO and founder of Massachusetts-based lending startup OwnUp, this issue hasn’t drawn enough attention in the mortgage space. “The latest HMDA data makes it startlingly clear – women are 124
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largely being left out of the conversation,” Boyaggi said. “Recent HMDA data confirms that discrimination in the homefinancing process is very real. The main reason? Many female borrowers simply fail to shop around for the best possible rate, which translates into losing thousands of dollars over the total life of their loan.” Boyaggi, however, admits his analysis is not exactly revelatory, and his intention is not to determine all the reasons women pay more. According to him It’s more important to acknowledge there’s a problem and take action.
WOMEN PAY HIGHER MORTGAGE RATES IN 49 STATES
“I am not certain everybody is THE POWER IS NOW MAGAZINE | MAY 2021
