Home buyers who identify as LGBTQ+, or intend to live with someone who does, should anticipate higher prices in the states and cities with laws in place to protect them from housing discrimination — potentially forcing some households to make sacrifices to live where they feel safest.
That’s according to a new analysis from Zillow
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which found home-buying costs were 46% higher in places that had anti-discrimination laws in place for LGBTQ+ people. People looking to buy in the states, cities or counties that protect LGBTQ+ people from being evicted or barred from renting or buying a home due to their gender identity or sexual orientation face typical home values of $435,884, while home values in spots without such protections are closer to $300,000.
Lower home values also typically translate to lower rents, meaning LGBTQ+ tenants are affected by the regional disparities, too.
“The unfair reality is that finding a home where buyers can feel safe, accepted and protected typically comes at a premium for LGBTQIA+ families,” Manny Garcia, senior population scientist at Zillow, said in a statement Thursday. “Not only are the states with statewide protections often among the most expensive in the country, but in states with an inconsistent patchwork of protections, the areas with those protections also tend to be more expensive.”
The U.S. has not yet passed federal legislation that would explicitly ban discrimination in jobs, housing, education and more based on sexual orientation or gender identity. However, a bill to do so — the Equality Act — has passed the House of Representatives twice and was reintroduced in Congress last month.
“‘Not only are the states with statewide protections often among the most expensive in the country, but in states with an inconsistent patchwork of protections, the areas with those protections also tend to be more expensive.’”
So, while the Biden administration recognizes LGBTQ+ people as being protected from discrimination under federal housing law, and while 23 states and the District of Columbia have housing-discrimination bans of their own, protections remain patchy and dependent on a person’s location.
The states with protections in place tend to be high-cost, left-leaning states like California, New York, Washington, Massachusetts and Hawaii, Zillow found. In Hawaii, for example, home values are roughly 180% more than typical prices in areas with no protections, at $834,499, and prices are 148% higher in California, at $737,900.
Still, there are deals to be found. Michigan, a Democrat-run state worried about population loss, boasts a 22% discount for home buyers compared to states with no protections, while the typical home in Iowa, a Republican-run state that has recently passed laws advocates say are anti-LGBTQ+, also costs 30% less than homes in states without protections, according to Zillow.
That’s likely welcome news for some LGBTQ+ buyers on the market, since one Zillow survey found 89% of LGBTQ+ buyers reported making at least one sacrifice to save up for their down payment, compared to 78% of cisgender, heterosexual buyers. But since many of the states with protections are also expensive, most buyers will have to weigh what’s most important to them.
“For now, every for-sale and rental listing on Zillow displays local legal protections, such as protections for source of income and against LGBTQ discrimination, as well as a single flat-free rental application — a game changer for LGBTQIA+ renters who disproportionately pay more in upfront costs,” Zillow said in a statement. “For homebuyers, Zillow displays locally available down-payment assistance programs on all listings to help shoppers find resources to help them qualify for financial help to buy their dream home.”
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