Black Homeowner Concealed her Race and her Home’s Appraisal more than Doubled.
Written by Site Hub on May 21, 2021
Carlette Duffy’s Indianapolis home appraised for much lower than she expected, and she was suspicious her race played a role.
Three years ago, Duffy purchased her home for $100,000 and because of home price apperciation in her area, she expected the price to be about $185,000 today. However, the first two appraisals priced her home at $125,000 and $110,000.
Duffy asked for a third appraisal, but this time she concealed her race. She took down all of her photos and asked a White friend to pose as her brother. After the third appraisal, her apprasial more than doubled, they priced her home at $259,000.
During an interview with CNN Duffy stated:
“It allowed me to see that I knew that I was right. But then you think about the fact that I had to remove myself from my home in order for my home to have value — that’s the part that really hurts. It felt dehumanizing, it felt demoralizing.”
