Title: HOLC “redlining” maps: The persistent structure of segregation and economic inequality » NCRC
Headings: HOLC “redlining” maps: The persistent structure of segregation and economic inequality
HOLC “redlining” maps: The persistent structure of segregation and economic inequality
Executive Summary
The economic and racial segregation created by “redlining” persists in many cities
Persistent economic inequality
Persistent residential segregation
INTRODUCTION

Content: Part of the evidence of this enduring structure can be seen in the Home Owners’ Loan Corporation (HOLC) maps created 80 years ago, and the neighborhood economic and racial/ethnic composition today. The maps were created by the HOLC as part of its City Survey Program in the late 1930s. The HOLC deployed examiners across the country to classify neighborhoods by their perceived level of lending risk. All cities in the study with regional divisions. HOLC examiners consulted with local bank loan officers, city officials, appraisers, and realtors to create “Residential Security” maps of cities. More than 150 of these maps still exist. The examiners systematically graded neighborhoods based on criteria related to the age and condition of housing, transportation access, closeness to amenities such as parks or disamenities like polluting industries, the economic class and employment status of residents, and their ethnic and racial composition. Neighborhoods were color-coded on maps: green for the “Best,” blue for “Still Desirable,” yellow for “Definitely Declining,” and red for “Hazardous.” NCRC has taken these maps and compared the grading from 80 years ago with more current economic and demographic status of neighborhoods as low-to-moderate income (LMI), middle-to-upper income (MUI), or majority-minority.