The Conditional Spatial Correlations between Racial Prejudice and Racial Disparities in the Market for Home Loans

Many studies have shown the existence of disparities in loan denial rates between blacks and whites that cannot be accounted for by observable applicant characteristics. Examining the link between racial gaps in home loan denial rates and prejudicial attitudes toward blacks measured by questions in the General Social Survey, this article shows that blacks are not only more likely to be denied conventional home mortgages but that denial rates among blacks for these loans are also geographically correlated with racial prejudice, particularly among first-lien home purchase loans and loans from depository lenders. However, among Federal Housing Administration-insured loans guaranteed by the government in the event of borrower default, this study finds no evidence of a statistical relationship between racial prejudice and loan denials among black applicants. Results are consistent with taste-based discrimination by discriminatory lenders, however one cannot rule out that statistical discrimination is at least partially driving the results

Evidence suggests racial prejudice is still stopping many African Americans from getting home mortgages

It is often much harder for African Americans to get a home mortgage compared to other racial groups in the US. But how much of this disparity is down to racial prejudice? In new research, Nolan Kopkin uses local area data on mortgage denials to investigate the role of racial prejudice in preventing African Americans from getting a mortgage. After accounting for other characteristics such as income and employment, he determines that racial prejudice in American counties is having an adverse impact on whether African Americans who live there are able to get a home mortgage

Essays In Labor And Education Economics

In chapter 1, I explore the relationship between discrimination towards blacks and the blackwhite self-employment rate gap, and provide the first direct empirical evidence that discrimination negatively impacts black self-employment. As a proxy for discrimination, I construct a measure of prejudicial attitudes using responses from the 1993-2010 General Social Survey. After compiling an index of prejudicial attitudes, I estimate the relationship between self-employment and this index of prejudicial attitudes using the 2005-2009 American Community Survey. I find that an amount of prejudice equal to the difference in the least and most prejudiced census divisions increases the black-white self-employment rate gap by 24.2%34.5%. In chapter 2, I examine how income tax rates affect the labor migration decisions of NBA free agents. By using a dataset of professional basketball players' free agent contracts from the National Basketball Association (NBA) between the 2001-2002 and 2007-2008 seasons, I am able to identify the effect that changes in income tax rates have on the labor migration decisions of NBA free agents. I find that an increase in the marginal income tax rate faced by NBA basketball players that play for a given team leads to a decrease in the average skill of the NBA free agents that migrate to that team. In chapter 3, I study how a nutritional improvement in school provided meals affects student outcomes. There has recently been an emphasis on decreasing childhood obesity and increasing the health of schoolchildren in the United States. Improving the nutritional content of school meals is one potential mechanism for achieving these goals. In addition to direct health benefits, these interventions may provide positive effects on students' academic and behavioral outcomes. In 2007, the Buffalo Public School District implemented the Healthier Options for Public Schoolchildren (HOPS) program, which increased the nutritional content of food provided at school. I find that students in HOPS schools experienced a statistically significant increase in iii standardized math test scores, particularly among low ability, high income, and female students. Additionally, I find that the intervention had no impact on standardized English test scores, attendance, or suspensions. i

Supplemental Material - Gender Gaps in Policy Responsiveness

Supplemental Material for Gender Gaps in Policy Responsiveness by Nolan Kopkin and Andrew Roberts in Political Research Quarterly</p