Our Research

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HOME has long been a source of credible housing-related research in the commonwealth. We build partnerships with local and state government, organizations, and with legislative officials to spark meaningful conversations about housing issues, educate the public and raise awareness, and advocate for systemic change in our communities.

HOME’s approach to housing research and policy is unique because we are able to gather information externally and internally. Our research team studies trends that emerge from our fair housing complaints and investigations, from our housing counseling clients, and from industry and local data sources. This research often serves as the catalyst for change in the housing systems that drive economic, educational, and social opportunities. The data we gather helps us take a strategic approach to addressing key housing issues.

Published Reports:

Single-Family Housing Market Assessment

October 2019

An Equity Analysis of Wealth Building Disparities in the City of Richmond, Virginia. This report stems from an analysis of mortgage lending trends in the city that HOME conducted in 2015 and expanded upon under contract in 2019.

Choice Constrained

May 2019

Limited Housing Options for Households Utilizing Housing Choice Vouchers. This report provides an update to research on voucher utilization in the Richmond metro region.

Moving to Opportunity

October 2018

Evaluation of HOME’s Move to Opportunity Program. In early 2018, HOME administered a survey to better understand the impact its mobility counseling program has on families with children.

Confronting School and Housing Segregation in the Richmond Region

September 2017

Can we learn and live together? This report looks at how segregated housing patterns limit access to financial resources, entrench poverty, concentrate environmental hazards, and create poorer health and educational outcomes. A collaboration between Virginia Commonwealth University, HOME, and the University of Richmond.

Excluded Communities

November 2015

A Spatial Analysis of Segregation in the Richmond Region. This report examines the changing nature of segregation in the metro-Richmond area, which is now far more multiracial than it was in the past. It offers an understanding of the growing diversity and deepening double segregation by race and poverty in schools.

Mortgage Lending in the City of Richmond

November 2015

An Analysis of the City’s Lending Patterns. This report stemmed from an analysis of subprime lending patterns in the City of Richmond during the years leading up to the housing crisis. HOME conducted this analysis of the city’s largest lending institutions to better understand the mortgage outcomes of homebuyers throughout the city.

A Study of Housing Discrimination Against Same Sex Couples in Virginia

January 2015

Over the course of 2014, HOME tested housing providers in the Richmond, Virginia region (the city of Richmond, Henrico County, and Chesterfield County) to determine the extent to which LGBT homeseekers experience discrimination.

Mapping Inequality in Richmond

Displayed 2013-2015

Mapping RVA Exhibit.

Where You Live Makes All the Difference: An Opportunity Map of the Richmond Region

December 2012

The Richmond Region Opportunity Map underscores the important role that housing plays in accessing opportunity. Opportunity mapping is a technique used to demonstrate the impact that housing choice has on a person’s ability to access all of the resources that comprise opportunity.

2013-2015 – City of Richmond Analysis of Impediments

2012 – The Impact of Foreclosures on Economic Recovery in Virginia

2011 – Virginia’s Neighborhoods and the American Jobs Act

2011 – Virginia’s Foreclosure Trends

2011 – Lynchburg Housing Assessment

2000-2009 – Fair Housing Trends in Virginia

2008 – Hampton Roads Audit Results

2006 – Richmond: Impediments to Fair Housing

2002 – African-Americans and People with Disabilities in Hampton Roads Rental Market

2002 – African-American and People with Disabilities in Roanoke, Lynchburg, Charlottesville and Fredericksburg