Moderating Effects of Race/Ethnicity on the Relationship between Homeownership and Health

Previous studies on the benefits of homeownership suggest higher health status and improved health outcomes. One gap in the literature is the effect of homeownership on health within different racial and ethnic minority groups. This study tests whether race moderates the effects of homeownership on self-reported health status, physical and psychological health outcomes, delays in medical care and delays in obtaining prescription medication.

We pooled data from the 2003, 2005, and 2007 California Health Interview Survey and included US born Latinos (N = 11,867), African Americans (N = 6,314) and non-Latino whites (N = 79,109) only. We used ordinal logistic regression to examine differences in self-perceived health status; zero inflated count regression to predict incidence risk ratios for number of psychological and general health conditions; and logistic regression to predict odds ratios for delays in medical care and obtaining prescription medication.

Our data confirmed that race significantly moderates the effect of homeownership on health, adjusting for a variety of socio-demographic and economic factors. However, while homeownership is a robust, independent predictor for each of these health outcomes in the non-Latino white population, homeownership is non-significant in predicting health outcomes in racial and ethnic minorities.

In spite of the recent housing crisis and economic recession, homeownership continues to be aggressively promoted within racial and ethnic communities. We discuss the idea that housing security is more directly linked to improved health outcomes than homeownership itself for ethnic minorities. Policies that improve housing security and decrease mortgage indebtedness for ethnic minorities are recommended.