At 25 years old, Keona Craft knows precisely what she wants: a place to call her own, a key to the front door, walls she can paint without permission, and a kitchen where she can cook for her future family.
What she does not know is whether she will ever get there.
“Knowing the credit score that is needed, understanding the down payments, knowing the negotiables, just having all the information needed to get it,” Craft said. “A lot of times it’s not even what you know, it’s who you know.”
Craft’s credit score is one of the primary reasons she is unable to apply for a home loan. She represents a growing generation of Black Houstonians eager for stability but unsure how to navigate the increasingly complicated and expensive path to homeownership.
She scrolls through home listings late at night from her apartment, the same apartment she’s determined not to be in two years from now. As a real estate student and credit consultant with side hustles in hair braiding, she is grinding toward that goal today.
But Craft is also confronting a truth many Black families know too well: wanting a home isn’t the same as being able to buy one. To gain access to resources, she attends real estate summits, like one organized by the Brooks & Davis Real Estate Firm.
“Our mission is simple: to equip Houstonians with the knowledge and resources they need to achieve financial stability and generational wealth through real estate,” said Michael G. Davis, CEO of the firm, who organized the Annual Real Estate Summit to help potential homebuyers. “We’re proud to stand alongside incredible community partners, vendors, and local leaders who share our vision of Building Wealth and Building Community across Houston.”
The gap
Homeownership remains the primary means by which Americans build wealth. In Houston, however, Black families remain disproportionately locked out.
By the numbers:
- Only 26% of Black households could afford the median-priced home in the Houston metro area, compared to 51% of White households (Houston Association of Realtors report, 2023)
- Even when Black homeownership rises in raw numbers, the overall share of Black households who own in Houston is declining, falling behind growth in other demographics (Rice University Kinder Institute for Urban Research)
- Overall, 39% of Houston-area households could afford to buy a median-priced home in the second quarter of 2025
Education
The road to homeownership is incomplete without education, says Lady Nico Bell, a loan officer at Rate, an organization centered on Black homeownership.
“We understand that we are not just Black in February. We’re Black 365 days of the year,” Bell said. “We honor that and make sure that we provide programs for everyone to have the same opportunity towards home ownership.”
For individuals like Craft, she says they either build someone else’s legacy by renting or their own by buying a home.
“Don’t allow fear to be the determining factor that will make you lose out on building a legacy and generational wealth for your families,” Bell added.
For many Houstonians, homeownership feels like a test they were never taught how to take. Credit rules, down-payment requirements, appraisals, inspections – it’s a maze. And one misstep can cost thousands.
Craft wants to avoid those mistakes. But she is slowly learning that the system is not built for newcomers without intergenerational wealth.
The path is not always easy
What is surprising to many renters: buying can cost less than renting.
That is the case that the Houston Habitat for Humanity is trying to show.
“People may not realize that the cost of a mortgage may be a lot less than what you’re paying right now for rent,” said Cassandra Robinson-Bacon, homeowner services director at the organization. “You’ll be paying for a mortgage that you can use to create generational wealth for your kids.”
The organization works with families earning as low as $50,000 a year. For example, if a family’s income is $55,000 a year, their mortgage amounts to $1,200-$1,300, taxes and insurance included, she added.
Meanwhile, renters in Houston frequently pay $1,500 to $1,800 for apartments with fewer bedrooms and more maintenance issues.
That is precisely what the math Craft is doing, budgeting frequently to reach her savings goal.
Keeping equity in the community
But affordability is only part of the story.
Black communities have been facing intense pressure on their land. Federal studies show appraisal discrimination remains a key factor in undervaluing homes where Black families live. Homes in Black neighborhoods are valued roughly 21% to 23% below what their valuations would be in non-Black neighborhoods.
In Harris County, homes in Black and Hispanic neighborhoods were valued at significantly lower rates than comparable homes in similar white neighborhoods.
It’s why Inspector and Appraiser Michael M. McElroy, owner and operator at A Purpose Real Estate and Insurance Services, got into the business.
“If we can get all appraisers, not just Black appraisers, but all appraisals, to act professionally and follow the guidelines, we can address those biases that exist in our communities,” McElroy said. “It’s important to get every home inspected, whether new or existing construction, because there are things that we can uncover that may not be visible to the naked eye.”
Protecting what you bought
Even once a family secures a home, the risks do not stop. This is what Meredith Beck, CEO of Skyline Title, wants buyers to know.
“It should probably be mandatory because title insurance ensures that the homeowner is the sole owner of that property,” she said. “There could be unknown debt on your property or even unknown ownership. Someone can try to assert a claim, saying that they owned it 20 years ago. There may be a lien on the property that you don’t know about when someone tries to sell you a property. So they say free and clear.”
Angel Henderson, an insurance agent at State Farm, emphasized the importance of insurance after purchasing a home.
“Make sure you have it and make sure you understand what those coverages are,” Anderson explained. “It can mean the difference between you paying thousands and thousands of dollars out of pocket, or your insurance company making the majority of those payments. There are no stupid questions. Ask and make sure you understand what you’re paying.”
Craft’s future and Houston’s
Craft hopes to be ready in one to two years. She knows she is an exception, as many of her peers are not yet aiming for homeownership. However, to get there, she believes the burden should not fall solely on young people navigating a complicated market.
To close the Black homeownership gap, she believes Houston must expand down-payment assistance for Black first-time buyers, address appraisal bias that undervalues Black neighborhoods, build more starter homes and preserve affordability, support Black-led real estate and development organizations, and provide early financial education in schools and communities.
As Bell puts it, “Either you will continue to build someone else’s legacy, or build your own in homeownership.”
