People of color in US pay higher rental fees than white peers: study

NEW YORK -- People of color in the United States fill out more rental applications and pay higher application fees and security deposits than their white peers, major U.S. news portal Insider has reported.

Black and Latinx renters submit three applications for every two applications Asian and white renters submit, the report said on Monday, citing a Zillow study released last week.

Roughly 9 in 10 renters paid a security deposit last year, with the average deposit coming in at 700 U.S. dollars; Black and Latinx renters were more likely to pay a security deposit, and when they did, the deposits were on average 150 dollars higher than white tenants, it said.

Zillow attributes these disparities to factors including that the average age of the Black and Hispanic renters are on average two years younger than white renters, and that white renters are more likely to be concentrated in rural areas where rent is cheaper, said Insider.

"While this is a microcosm of what is happening in the U.S. rental market, racial discrimination can be seen across the housing market," it noted, adding that Black applicants' home loan applications were three times more likely to be rejected than their white counterparts.