Millions of Mortgages Exposed
Same income. Same loan amount. Same neighborhood. The only difference?
Higher rate spread above benchmark. On a $300K loan, that's thousands more over the life of the mortgage.
Worst B/W states: Wisconsin (+0.40pp), Louisiana (+0.40pp), South Carolina (+0.37pp), Michigan (+0.36pp), Illinois (+0.35pp)
Rate spread measures how much above the benchmark rate (APOR) a borrower pays. Higher spread = worse deal. Even after accounting for market conditions and loan terms, the gaps persist.
A fraction of a percent doesn't sound like much. But over 30 years, it adds up to tens of thousands of dollars. Adjust the numbers to see the real cost.
White Borrower
6.500%
$1896/mo
Total: $682,633
Black Borrower (same everything else)
6.800%
$1956/mo
Total: $704,079
Extra cost over 30 years:
$21,446
That's $60 more per month, every month, for 30 years.
“Maybe they have lower incomes.” No. Even within the same income bracket, the rate spread gap persists. This chart shows the average spread above benchmark by race, at each income level.
Key Finding
The income explanation doesn't hold up. At every income level, minority borrowers tend to pay higher rate spreads. The gap often widens at higher incomes, suggesting the disparity isn't about ability to pay.
Where are the biggest lending gaps? States ranked by the Black-White rate spread difference. Positive = Black borrowers pay more above benchmark.
If you believe you've been charged a higher rate because of your race, you have rights. Share this data, file complaints, and support fair lending.
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This project uses data from the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA), administered by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). HMDA requires most mortgage lenders to report detailed data about each application, including the borrower's race, income, loan terms, and the interest rate charged.
We analyze originated mortgage loans (home purchase and refinance) for primary residences across all 50 states and DC, spanning 2018–2023. Rate spreads (above the benchmark APOR rate) are compared by race, stratified by income bracket, loan type (conventional, FHA, VA, USDA), and state. Hispanic ethnicity is identified via HMDA's derived_ethnicity field.
Justice Index · Three Investigations
Bias doesn't stop at lending. It follows people from the traffic stop to the courtroom to the bank.
Open source · Built with HMDA public data · Open for scrutiny