CMC Daily Connector
Friday March 26, 2021
Part VII: Repent. Repair. Real Estate (!?!)
“Diversity, Inclusion, and Equity” by Brent Miller

Earlier this week I wrote about “Redlining” practices that were commonplace up until the 1968 Fair Housing Act made it illegal. It just so happened that in the latest edition of REALTOR® Magazine that showed up this week, there was a story that included the following image:

 
I share this to show you the actual text that would have appeared with a “Redline Map.” This text was from an Evanston, Illinois redline map from 1940. If you were not aware, in November of 2019, Evanston became the first municipality in the United States to commit financial reparations payments to black families that live in the city and were affected by the racist practices.

“Diversity, Inclusion, and Equity” is the institutional focus of the National Association of REALTORS® for 2021. I am hearing more about this topic within the industry than I have in the 11 years I have worked full time in it. The Association has come a long way since the times when “no blacks allowed” or “no Jews allowed” were mixed in with other REALTOR-speak like “large front porch” or “updated kitchen.”
It is encouraging to hear the voices of young real estate professionals speaking up, demanding change, and re-aligning our industry. There is still much work to be done though.