Overview

National data indicates a surge in African-American suburbanization during the 1970s. What are the barriers that have slowed this process for so long? Is black entry to the suburbs synonymous with integration? To what extent does it contribute to convergence in the residential distributions of whites and blacks? This careful and thorough study marshals evidence that black suburbanization offers less than full realization of the American Dream.Homeownership in the United States is a source of security, a sign of status, a means of equity accumulation, and a bond to the community. The basic premise underlying The New Suburbanitesis the preeminence of equal access. Survey data collected for this analysis pertains to successful homebuyers - whites and blacks who were able to negotiate safely the treacherous housing market conditions.Specifically, Robert W. Lake draws from a unique survey of black and white homebuyers to assess the institutional and housing market barriers to black suburban homeownership. How does racial discrimination add to the cost, time, and difficulty of housing search for black homebuyers? What is the effect of discrimination on housing prices, resale value, and equity accumulation? What is behind the complexity of white and black attitudes to suburban racial integration? What is the perspective of the real estate agent, the key market intermediary? The book addresses each of these questions and concludes with a critique of present federal fair housing legislation and an assessment of policy implications.

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9781412848589

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<p> One of the surprising demographic trends of the 1970s was the rapid increase in the black population living in suburbs . . . Robert Lake's study of New Jersey trends leads him to conclude that this change produces not integration but rather the differentiation of suburbs along racial lines . . . This is an informative study of demographic change and real estate practices . . . Thanks to this investigation, we know more about the suburbanization of blacks, especially the movement of blacks to areas undergoing racial transition. <p> --Reynolds Farley, Growth and Change <p> The recent nature of black suburbanization in the United States has attracted substantial research attention. It seems to be one of the hot topics in the study of metropolitan population distribution . . . This study provides overwhelming evidence that blacks in suburbs are segregated residentially, even within so-called mixed communities. <p> --Avery M. Guest, Journal of Regional Science <p> Every so often there appears a scholarly work that integrates a field of knowledge and immediately becomes an indispensable tool for research on the subject. The New Suburbanites is clearly such an achievement, and students of urban social geography and contemporary American suburbs are greatly indebted to Robert W. Lake, who has established himself as one of the foremost authorities on black suburbanization in the United States . . . It is not only a splendid and eminently readable introduction to the subject but also a state-of-the-art survey of current knowledge. Lake's book is a scrupulously fair and logical treatment of a frequently emotional subject, a major contribution to the social science literature, and a model of excellence in geographical research. <p> --Peter O. Muller, Geographical Reviews

Author Information

Robert W. Lake is professor at the Rutgers University Center for Urban Policy Research and co-director of the Rutgers Community Outreach Partnership Center. He is a member of the graduate faculty in the department of geography and the Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy. His writings include Resolving Locational Conflict, Readings in Urban Analysis, and Real Estate Tax Delinquency.

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