When the National Association of REALTORS® added ethnicity questions to its bi-annual homebuyers and sellers survey for the first time in 1997, a Pandora's Box may have been inadvertently opened. The survey shows in unvarnished black and white that home ownership is still primarily a Caucasian's dream. The numbers are also mirrored by the 92% of real estate professionals who are white. To correct the imbalance, the NAR, along with HUD, is making efforts to level the playing field which may shortly improve the outlook for both minority real estate professionals and minority consumers.

A shocking discovery

The NAR's 1997 survey revealed that a full 90% of homebuyers for the survey's two-year period were white. Only five percent were African American and eight percent were of Hispanic origin with others consisting of Asian, Pacific American and native American backgrounds. English is the primary language for all but four percent of buyers. This is a startlingly high percentage of white homebuyers in comparison to the overall racial/ethnic backgrounds of the general population - but not when you compare the figures to the eerily similar real estate professional profile. Over 92% of Realtors are white, with the remaining eight percent listed as African American, Hispanic, Asian or other.

That is a biased color/ethnicity image that NAR would like to change.

"This clearly is not a reflection of the general society," says Fred Underwood, senior Fair Housing policy representative for NAR. "What we would like to see is a more culturally diverse agent and homebuyer population."

The NAR partners with HUD

Diversity is a goal also shared by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which has partnered with the NAR to create a four-part Housing Diversity Program to assist Realtors to better serve the minority consumer. The training program, entitled "At Home With Diversity: One America," offers a new certification program for real estate practitioners which when completed, will give them more information and marketing skills in addressing minority needs. The program is designed to help real estate professionals learn to work with buyers of different minority groups, cultures and ethnic backgrounds, and to encourage more people of various ethnic backgrounds to become real estate practitioners.

To add momentum to the program, NAR has sponsors and certified trainers in every market across the country. With as many as 4,000 agents expected to complete the program across the country over the next year, and with home ownership at an all-time high of 66.8%, the NAR hopes that the program will help to sustain the home-buying momentum.

But will minority agents see the value of the diversity program?

One agent criticizes the new program as giving one more edge to white agents. "What about a certificate in a course for black or Hispanic agents on how to get non-minority sales and listings?" queries agent Melvin Simpson. "Minority agents are relegated to dealing with 99% minorities while anglo agents can do business with all races, yet we pay the same dues/fees as non-minorities. This is a far more important issue than the one-sided diversity certificate."

The question may well be on the minds of many minority agents.

Underwood responds, "The way we approached the whole diversity course is to provide any real estate professional the tools to work with clients who are different from themselves. Diversity is not just in color or national origin. It could be religious or another form of orientation. We are focused on racial and ethnic issues primarily because HUD is working with us, but we are not aiming the program at one particular group or another."

"The share of new homebuyers is almost 50% minority," continues Underwood. "The immigration population is growing enormously. This isn't Leave It to Beaver anymore. The world is changing, folks. You don't have all white, married couples with children looking for homes. We have all kinds of people."

This is the first part of a two part series. Tomorrow in PART II will examine minority population trends and how NAR's new program will effect the minority Realtor and customer.