This ratio provides a rough estimate of the affordability of homes in a community. A ratio less than 2 or 3 is considered affordable. High housing costs can force households to choose between paying for housing and meeting other basic needs such as food, clothing and health care.

In 2017-21, Norfolk County homes were most unaffordable for Hispanic and Asian homeowners, with ratios of 4.5 and 4.4 respectively, followed by African Americans (4.2) and whites (4.0). These ratios were generally lower (more affordable) than state ratios, particularly for Hispanics, but generally higher (less affordable) than national ratios.

Among comparison counties, Norfolk generally had the lowest ratios for all groups, particularly for Hispanic households - 4.5 in Norfolk compared to Essex (6.3) and Middlesex (6.2). Norfolk's ratios for Asian and white households were similar to Middlesex.

Historic and current policies and systems, from racist housing policies to employment discrimination to education systems that fail to equitably serve all populations, have prevented people of color from fully participating in our economy, locking them out of economic opportunity. This has resulted in lower incomes for people of color, which means housing costs are a greater burden.

Multi-year data are from the Census Bureau's American Community Survey, Public Use Microdata Sample. The American Community Survey combines five years of responses to provide estimates for smaller geographic areas and increase the precision of its estimates. The survey provides data on characteristics of the population that used to be collected only during the decennial census.