A recent study has revealed that the rate at which Hispanic are buying homes has improved in the previous year, and the growth is expected to be on the rise in coming years, and there is a possibility that they will outnumber other population units.

The next fifteen years will witness an exponential increase in the sales of housing units by persons of Hispanic descent as there has been a record of growth in the number of incomes, education levels, and households. Several reasons have been identified as the major problems that could affect the growth of Hispanic homebuyers adversely. There is a need for financial institutions and real estate players to make concerted efforts to offer assistance to Hispanic homebuyers by having a thorough understanding of their economic and cultural norms. One of the things that could discourage the Hispanics from purchasing housing units is the potential illegal-immigration law.

MAJOR PROBLEMS HISPANIC BUYERS ENCOUNTER

Most Hispanic persons have various factors working against them, and this has made it hard for them to be eligible for mortgages which will help them purchase their homes. Examples of these issues range from language differences, saving and spending culture, to multigenerational households and cash incomes. For instance, the national homeownership published report was a product of the collaboration of the National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals and the Hispanic Wealth Project. The purpose of the Hispanic Real Estate Professionals is to inform the industry of the buying power of the Hispanics, educating the real estate industry and buyers about the prospects of building viable homeownership opportunities. The report enumerated the following problems for Hispanic homebuyer:

• 1.    INABILITY TO SECURE MORTGAGE: More Hispanics have been denied the opportunity to own property as the denial increase is 18%. Lending firms have a negative impression about Hispanic have a lousy credit rating.

• 2.    SHORTAGE OF AFFORDABLE HOMES: It is common knowledge that Hispanics make a home purchase with lower down payments and always prefer to go for smaller mortgage plans irrespective of their affluent status. Homes valued below $250,000 are often faced with fierce competition as there are limited in number.

• 3.    BAD CREDIT MYTH: There is a myth working against the interests of Hispanic as credit institutions have a feeling that Hispanics do not have an excellent credit history. In reality, most Hispanics have more than a source of livelihood, and these individuals often live in a household and deal with cash payments most times. These factors contribute to the refusal of their mortgage applications. 

• 4.    LACK OF QUALIFIED MORTGAGE AND REAL ESTATE EXPERTS: The population of Hispanic mortgage brokers and real estate agents is considerably low at the moment. According to Martha Navarro who worked with Melissa when she sold the old house and bought the new house, she said there is a need to speak fluent Spanish to have excellent communication with most Hispanic people who want to buy a home. She also confirmed that most of her customers speak Spanish and also want to be sure she understands their needs.