The Interagency Task Force on Property Appraisal and Valuation Equity recently released a set of actions to carry out the PAVE Action Plan, which guarantees every American who buys a home has the same opportunities to create generational wealth through home ownership.
According to a June 1 news release by U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the task force is co-chaired by White House Domestic Advisor Neera Tanden and HUD Secretary Marcia L. Fudge.
“Owning a home provides a path to the American dream,” Fudge said in the release. “Yet, that dream has been deferred for Black and Brown people, as we have consistently had our homes under-valued. Having your home undervalued is bigger than just a number on a page. It can be the difference between getting a loan and not – between having enough money for retirement or not."
By removing barriers to entry into the appraisal profession, and using federal data to inform policy, assist enforcement and support research on appraisal bias, the actions announced will prevent algorithmic bias in home valuation while empowering consumers to take action against appraisal bias, the release reported.
"Through the President’s PAVE Task Force, the Biden-Harris administration is taking bold action to address appraisal bias – and renewing our commitment to doing everything in our power to root it out, once and for all,” Fudge added, according to the release.
With significant racial and ethnic differences in homeownership rates and the financial benefits of home ownership, home ownership continues to be a main cause of the divide in wealth, the release said. The average white family is reportedly eight times wealthier than the average black family, and also five times wealthier than the average Latino family.
The PAVE Action plan was published by the PAVE Taskforce more than a year ago, according to the release. The fact sheet contains details on the activities and developments of the PAVE Task Force.
Federal departments and representatives from the following list make up the Task Force membership: the Department of Justice, secretary of Agriculture, secretary of Labor, secretary of Veterans Affairs, comptroller of the Currency, chairman of the board of governors of the Federal Reserve, chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, chairman of the National Credit Union Administration, director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, executive director of the Appraisal Subcommittee and the co-chairs Tanden and Fudge, the release said.
These actions come two years after President Joe Biden announced the formation of the initiative to eradicate bias in the house assessment process, the release reported. This came on the 100th anniversary of the Tulsa Race Massacre.
