Getting a home improvement loan in Philly is harder when you’re low-income or a minority, study shows

by Caitlin McCabe, Updated: December 27, 2018

Philadelphia is often called “The City of Neighborhoods,” an ode to its diverse housing stock and a high rate of home ownership.

More than 52 percent of homes in the city are owner-occupied, 2017 data from the U.S. Census Bureau show, and the city tends to outperform the national average when it comes to minority home ownership. Nearly two-thirds of Philadelphia homes, according to some estimates, are classified as rowhouses. And more than 80 percent of the city’s housing supply was built before 1970.