Category: Exercise 2 housing sources

Some Real Estate Agents Discriminate Against Black Home Buyers

Posted on Author Veronica Armendariz

The article I examined was “Some real estate agents discriminate against black home buyers” which is an article in the Hartford Courant published on May 21, 1989 (1). In 1989, the Courant conducted a random test in which two potential home buyers of different race would enter a real estate agency with the same financial backgrounds and attempt to buy homes. Both the results and reactions towards the random testing proved something very significant to future home buyers in the Hartford metropolitan area: there was a plethora of evidence demonstrating that there was discrimination between each buyer in each of the 15 real estate agencies investigated.

When investigating each agency, the “home buyers” were each treated differently. The African American home buyer would constantly be under scrutiny because of their financial status and never told about the type of education that would be received in the neighborhoods when asking the realtors. Moreover, the African American buyers would only be shown a couple of houses in the suburbs, but steered towards predominantly African American towns and cities (such as Hartford and Bloomfield). However, the white home buyer would not be questioned about their financial status and would be shown a number of homes in suburbs such as West Hartford. Also, white buyers would be taken to see the homes, and they were told all of the success schools have been having in the area. This practice of “steering” home buyers to a certain area had been practiced before he 1980’s with the start of the Great Migration leading a large number of African Americans to Hartford in 1910 (2). Having the ability to sell these people homes in the Hartford metropolitan area gave real estate agents the advantage to change the reputation of a city or suburb through the buyers’ “anxieties about racially mixed schools” (3).

Similarly the same prejudiced that African American home buyers experienced, African American real estate agents would experience when working at a predominantly white real estate agency. In the article “Black agents learn to deal with the real world”, the article exposes the hardships of African American real estate agents in the Hartford Courant. When showing a house to a potential African American buyer, the white real estate agent always scrutinizes the capability in which the buyer can afford the house even though the previous agent (who is African American) has already concluded that the buyer can afford the home. The only way for African American realtors to make sure racial discrimination does not happen is by “threatening them with the rules”(4).

Sources:

(1) Bixby, Lyn, Brant Houston, Jeffrey Williams, and Larry Williams. “Some Real Estate Agents Discriminate against Back Home Buyers.” The Hartford Courant 21 May 1989: n. pag. Print.

(2) Tuckel, P., K. Schlichting, and R. Maisel. “Social, Economic, and Residential Diversity Within Hartford’s African American Community at the Beginning of the Great Migration.” Journal of Black Studies 37.5 (2007): 710-36. Print.

I found this citation through JSTOR by searching under “Hartford”, “real estate”, and “discrimination”.

(3) Dougherty, Jack. “Shopping for Schools: How Public Education and Private Housing Shaped Suburban Connecticut.” Journal Of Urban History 38, no. 2 (March 2012): 205-224. America: History & Life, EBSCOhost (accessed September 15, 2013).

I found this journal through America:History and Life by searching the key words “Hartford”, “discrimination”, “1989”, and “real estate”.

(4) Williams, Larry. “Black Agents Learn to Deal with the Real World.” The Hartford Courant 21 May 1989: n. pag. Print.

(5) Beeching, Barbara J. 2005. “Reading the Numbers: Census Returns as Key to the Nineteenth Century Black Community in Hartford, Connecticut.” Connecticut History 44, no. 2: 224-247. America: History & Life, EBSCOhost (accessed September 15, 2013).

I found this article by searching through America: History and Life by searching “Hartford”, “discrimination”, and “real estate”.

Discussion Questions:

1). The accounts given from the real estate agents all claim to have said that they were keeping the best interest in mind for each buyer when choosing to show them houses. Do you think there was a different between whether an African American real estate agent or white real estate agent was dealing with a buyer with the opposite race? Why or why not?

2) In considering the different options given from each real estate agent, do you think a buyer that was African American could receive more options from consulting with numerous real estate agents? Why or why not?

3) Some real estate agents chose to show some African American home buyers a select couple of houses in suburbs in West Hartford and suburbs similar to it. Why do you think real estate agents did this? What kind of conditions do you think these homes were in?

Where Can a Negro Live?

Posted on Author Karen T. Taylor

The article that I examined, ” “Where Can a Negro Live?: A Study of Housing Discrimination In Hartford (Series Part 2)”, is the second in a series of articles featured in the Hartford Courant. It was published on Aug 20, 1956. The article tells of the plight of people of color seeking to leave the city to take residence in neighboring suburbs. A black doctor with financial means to purchase a home in a private housing development in a nearby suburb, was refused by the builder. According to the article, some upwardly mobile “Negroes” sought to relocate to the north to improve their lives only to find that they were barred from living in white neighborhoods. The barring was done not only by individuals renting or selling their homes, but also by real estate agents and mortgage lenders. The article tells of the discrimination people of color faced when attempting to move out from Hartford’s slums. The article reveals that housing barriers at that time were not created solely by policies and laws, but they were enforced by the social ideals of people of the citizens.

Discussion Questions:

1.) In the article, a negro who was new to community said that he and his wife found that the north was more “vicious” than the south, because people were more discrete about their discrimination. Do you agree or disagree with that statement and why?

2.) In the beginning of the article, Rotberg describes zones that were accepted as “Negro areas” and areas that were transitioning from older white to Negro. What could have been the cause of areas transitioning from “older white to Negro”?

Related Source Materials:

I attempted to find the other articles in the series, so I went to the Hartford Courant website. I searched for the title of the series in the query. Unfortunately, they don’t offer articles from the 1950’s on the web. I revised my search and looked for “housing discrimination Hartford” instead. I came back with a very recent article, “Housing Discrimination Case Brings Damages, Highlights Lost Opportunities” [1]. I also did a Google search for “where can a negro live hartford”. I came back with several hits under the Cities, Suburbs, and Schools Project. The one I found the most interesting was a document on the Trinity College Repository. It is an oral history interview on civil rights in the state of connecticut [2]. I used Command + F to quickly search the document and find the portion that matched my search. Once I was able to get access to VPN off campus, I searched again for the series of articles through the Trinity College Library news and newspapers database. I was successful and found all seven articles. “Where Can a Negro Live?: A Study of Housing Discrimination In Hartford PART I” [3] was at my fingertips.

1. Gosselin, Kenneth R. “Housing Discrimination Case Brings Damages, Highlights Lost Opportunities.” Hartford Courant 5 Aug. 2013: n. pag. Web.

2. Caplan, Eleanor Neiditz. Oral history interview on Connecticut Civil Rights (with video) by Anique Thompsonfor the Cities, Suburbs, and Schools Project, Jul. 2011. PDF.

3. Rotberg, Robert. “Where Can a Negro Live?: A Study of Housing Discrimination In Hartford PART I.” Hartford Courant 19 Aug. 1956: n. pag. Print.

West Hartford Zoning: Report to the Zoning Commission on the Zoning of West Hartford

Posted on Author Christina Raiti and Alexander Conaway

In 1854 West Hartford established itself as its own independent town housing less than 1,200 residents, and by the early 1920’s the town had gone from a farming community to a suburb where people came to get away from the overcrowded area of Hartford and were “attracted to the comfort and beauty” (8) that the open space had provided.  “West Hartford Zoning: Report to the Zoning Commission on the Zoning of West Hartford” is a document written in 1924, which allows us to understand the reasoning and guidelines for the process of zoning.  Robert Whitten allows us to understand the process of zoning and what regulations and aspects go into the creation of zoning a specific area.

The purpose of zoning is to help create a uniform, neat, upscale community.  It serves to eliminate trash, and ensure a sense of comfort, health, and happiness in an attempt to build an ascending city.  Essentially, in order to get an area zoned there must be a proposal which contains reasoning, supporting evidence, and a site map.  For this article in particular, it focuses on the importance of zoning in West Hartford.  It also allows us to understand the mindset and powers the Commissioners had.

One big proponent is that West Hartford must serve as a home for many classes of workers who will be commuting into the city of Hartford.  Transportation is taken care of for the most part in this area and with that being said, there should be no traffic or congestion of people.  The article mentions that many people moved to West Hartford from Hartford because the land and space is very desirable.  They were in search for a less hectic city with less chaos.   In order to make sure it remains that way, zoning must take place.  Rules on building size, type, materials used, etc., will assist in bringing the city to its largest potential.  West Hartford was to be divided into three sections, residential, business, industrial.  Within the residential areas no business can occur.  Places like schools, churches, and houses are permitted.  Within the residential area itself there are sub divisions such as single and triple family homes.  In the business area of town establishments such as restaurants, office buildings, shops, and malls are permitted.  Rules included are building lines and front yard restrictions, side and rear yard restrictions, percentage of lot occupancy, height of buildings restrictions, and a few other personal restrictions.  All these restrictions and laws are put in place in order to keep West Hartford safe and are meant to keep it an ideal place to raise a family.

Other Sources:

“Land Use Without Zoning” by Bernard Siegan.  We found this source by using the key word “zoning” on Trincoll.worldcat.org.

“Zoning of Planned Residental Developments” by Eli Godlston and James Scheuer.  We found this source by searching “Zoning” and “Hartford” in the JSTOR search bar.

“Density Zoning And Class Segregation In U.S. Metropolitan Areas” by Jonathon Rothwell and Douglas Massey. We found this source by searching the “Zoning” and “Segregation”  America: History & Life.

Discussion Questions:

1)   Why would it be important to put a time limit on renovating older homes?  Is it possible for people to take advantage of parts of the restrictions?

2)   Do you think zoning ultimately helped equalize the community or did it do more harm than good?  And why?

3)   After doing research and learning Robert Whitten was a white male in the 1920’s do you think the African Americans living in the area were encouraged to leave?  Do you think everyone was in favor of zoning?

Goldston, Eli, and James H. Scheuer. “Zoning of Planned Residential Developments.” JSTOR. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Sept. 2013.

Rothwell, Jonathan T., and Douglas S. Massey. “Density Zoning And Class Segregation In U.S. Metropolitan Areas ” Social Science Quarterly (Wiley-Blackwell) 91.5 (2010): 1123-1143. America: History & Life. Web. 14 Sept. 2013.

Siegan, Bernard H. Land Use without Zoning. Lexington, MA: Lexington, 1972. Print.

Whitten, Robert Harvey. West Hartford Zoning. Report to the Zoning Commission on the Zoning of West Hartford,. West Hartford, CT: Zoning Commission, 1924. 6+. Web.

Housing Barriers Exercise

Posted on Author Emily Meehan

“West Hartford Zoning: Report to the Zoning Commission on the Zoning of West Hartford”  was written by Robert Whitten, a commissioner of the Zoning Authority.  This source reports guidelines regarding the purpose of zoning, zoning regulations, and how the commissioners believed zoning was going to benefit West Hartford.

The report begins by explaining why zoning codes were necessary.  In the 1920’s Hartford was becoming congested so people began to move out of the city to West Hartford.  Many  were also attracted to the “comfort…of the open residential sections” (Whitten 6) that West Hartford offered.  Zoning was created to preserve this aspect of West Hartford, as well as to secure the safety from dangers such as fires, and to provide welfare in living and working conditions.

Under the Zoning Authority, commissioners could regulate the size, height, and number of buildings in a specific area.  Commissioners could also regulate plans and materials used to build such structures, as well as where they could be located and the amount of space they could take up.

Zoning divided West Hartford into three districts: residence districts, business districts, and industrial districts.  In residential districts, only structures such as houses, parks, schools, and a other non-business or industrial strustures were permitted.  In the business district, buildings such as retail businesses, offices, and restaurants were all that were permitted.  Finally in the industrial district, only manufacturing and storage structures were allowed.  Within each district, certain boundaries indicating how large a garage could be, or the minimum area of a backyard could be, existed.  These rules were put in place with a goal in mind: to keep West Hartford safe, and from overcrowding.  Housing barriers, such as zoning, at this time were extremely restrictive, and because of this only certain people, who could afford the regulated homes, were allowed to live in areas that enforced zoning codes.

Other sources:

Exclusionary Zoning Litigation by David H Moskowitz.  I found this book by conducting an advanced search on Trincoll.WorldCat.org.  (Moskowitz, 1-5).

Zoning and Diversity in Historical Perspective by Emily Talen.  I found this academic journal by doing an advanced search on the America: History and Life database.

Fiscal Zoning in Suburban Communities by Duane Windsor.  I found the Trincoll.WorldCat.org database to be the easiest to use, so I used that again to find this source.

Discussion Questions:

1)  In what ways was did zoning contribute to unequal housing barriers?

2)  Do you believe the real goal of zoning was to secure safety of the inhabitants of West Hartford, or do you think it was designed to ensure only certain types of people could occupy West Hartford (for example, those who could afford to abide by the restrictions?)

Moskowitz, David H. Exclusionary Zoning Litigation. Cambridge, MA: Ballinger Pub., 1977. Print.

Talen, Emily. “Zoning and Diversity in Historical Perspective.” Journal of Planning History 11.4 (2012): 330-47. Print.

Whitten, Robert Harvey. West Hartford Zoning. Report to the Zoning Commission on the Zoning of West Hartford,. West Hartford, CT: Zoning Commission, 1924. 6+. Web.

Windsor, Duane. Fiscal Zoning in Suburban Communities. Lexington, MA: Lexington, 1979. Print.