Ethnicity, Immigration, and Wealth Fluctuations in the United States

Review of Income and Wealth, Forthcoming

72 Pages Posted: 17 Jan 2016 Last revised: 6 Apr 2017

See all articles by Olga Gorbachev

Olga Gorbachev

University of Delaware - Economics

Brendan O'Flaherty

Columbia University, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, Department of Economics

Rajiv Sethi

Barnard College, Columbia University; Santa Fe Institute

Date Written: April 6, 2017

Abstract

Wealth in the United States rose and fell precipitously during the first decade of this century for all major ethnic groups, but the fluctuations in Hispanic wealth were especially extreme. We show that household characteristics and location can account for the Hispanic experience during the boom but not the bust. We argue that the sudden collapse in credit availability to undocumented immigrants at the start of the recession led, through a contraction in demand for the homes of natural sellers in this market, to a loss in wealth far greater than could be predicted based on household characteristics and location alone.

Keywords: Wealth Inequality, Housing, Immigration, Ethnicity

JEL Classification: D31, E21, J15

Suggested Citation

Gorbachev, Olga and O'Flaherty, Brendan and Sethi, Rajiv, Ethnicity, Immigration, and Wealth Fluctuations in the United States (April 6, 2017). Review of Income and Wealth, Forthcoming, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2716308 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2716308

Olga Gorbachev

University of Delaware - Economics ( email )

Newark, DE 19716
United States

Brendan O'Flaherty

Columbia University, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, Department of Economics ( email )

420 W. 118th Street
Mail Code 3308
New York, NY 10027
United States

Rajiv Sethi (Contact Author)

Barnard College, Columbia University ( email )

3009 Broadway
New York, NY 10027
United States
212-854-5140 (Phone)

HOME PAGE: http://www.columbia.edu/~rs328/

Santa Fe Institute

1399 Hyde Park Road
Santa Fe, NM 87501
United States

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