Qualified Renters Need Not Apply: Race and Housing Voucher Discrimination in the Metro Boston Rental Housing Market

Abstract

Black, Indigenous, and People of Color have long had to navigate the barriers of racist laws, policies, and actions in housing. Housing discrimination perpetuates segregation and contributes to maintaining the status quo of disparities with respect to health inequities as well as income, wealth, and opportunity gaps. The COVID-19 pandemic has put these inequities in stark relief. Data on the current status of such discrimination is valuable for policy makers who should develop anti-racist policies that dismantle structural racism and its attendant harms.

Using matched-pair testing, we measure the level of discrimination based on race and income level in the Greater Boston rental housing market, where both race- and income-based housing discrimination is illegal. Data from the study show high levels of discrimination against both black people and individuals using housing vouchers throughout the pre-rental application