1. Homeownership
For most U.S. families, a home usually comprises the largest portion of their assets. “Homeownership is the central vehicle Americans use to store wealth, so homeownership and access to homeownership are at the heart of that widening wealth gap,” says Ruetschlin.
Seventy-three percent of whites own a home, compared to 47% of Latinos and 45% of blacks. The median white homeowner’s house is worth $85,800 compared to $50,000 for black homeowners and $48,000 for Latino homeowners.
- Education
A college education is all but required to flourish in the labor market, establish financial stability and build wealth. But the gap in college attainment by whites versus blacks and Latinos has widened over the last decade. In 2011, 34% of whites completed a four-year college degree, whereas just 20% of blacks and 13% of Hispanics did. One obstacle is the surge in college costs over recent years, forcing households to take on significant debt to send student to college.
But obtaining a bachelor’s isn’t enough for a black or Hispanic person to escape the racial wealth gap. The return on investment in college is much higher for whites than for blacks and Hispanics: A white family at the median sees a return of $55,869 from completing a four-year degree. A black family sees $4,846 and an Hispanic family $4,191.
- Labor Markets
Labor markets can provide economic security through earned income, employer-provided health coverage, paid leave and workplace retirement plans. But inequality in the labor market is responsible for 20% of the growth in the racial wealth gap in the last 25 years, and unemployment another 9%. Disparate outcomes in the labor market can come from employment discrimination, geographic barriers to jobs and differing levels of social capital. The typical white family earns $50,400, while the typical black family earns $32,038, and the typical Latino family, $36,840.
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(Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own.)