At a time when natural disasters are becoming more frequent and severe, minority homeowners are at greater climate risk than White homeowners, according to a new report from Zillow Research.
It comes from major wind damage, extreme heat, wildfires and poor air quality, as well as flooding. The report found that extreme heat affected 81% of Black-owned homes, 77% of Hispanic homes and 52% of White homes. Severe wind was a threat to 60% of Black and 32% of White homeowners. Wildfires put 24% of Hispanic and 18% of White homes at risk. Poor air quality threatened the homes of 32% of Asian Americans and 11% of Whites.
When these risks become reality, the costs can be overwhelming, as was seen in the severe flooding that affected Southeastern states. This was especially the case in Florida and Georgia last year, in addition to the devastating wildfires that tore through vast residential and natural areas of Los Angeles in 2025 on the West Coast.
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“In 2024, there were 27 individual weather and climate disasters with at least $1 billion in damages, trailing only the record-setting 28 events analyzed in 2023. These disasters resulted in at least 568 direct or indirect fatalities, which is the eighth-highest number for billion-dollar disasters over the last 45 years (1980-2024). The cost was approximately $182.7 billion,” the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) reported in January, before the fires torched parts of Southern California.
The costs of Hurricane Helene alone were $78.7 billion after it struck Florida, Georgia and Western North Carolina on September 26, 2024. Hurricane Milton, which struck parts of the same area on October 9 cost the region $34.3 billion, NOAA has calculated.
Zillow stated that disparities in climate risk exposures persist, even though most U.S. homes are predominantly White-owned, with a risk score of 5 or higher. It said the disparities in flood risk locally could be due to historical discrimination and patterns of resource allocation. For example, even though flood risk is fairly evenly distributed at a national level, that may not be true in specific locations, like New Orleans, where 76% of White homeowners are at risk, but more than 90% of Asian-American and Black and almost the same share of Hispanic homeowners face the threat of flooding.
“According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), minorities and other vulnerable communities face a higher risk of flooding because they are more likely to live in lower-lying, risk-prone areas that have received less investment and therefore have deteriorating infrastructure,” Zillow commented. It noted, however, that in Florida’s coastal markets like Miami, Tampa and Jacksonville where White ownership of waterfront properties prevails, White homeowners are more at risk.
Natural disaster risks can exacerbate financial inequality for minority homeowners because they increase the cost of homeownership due to higher insurance and energy expenses, as well as the costs of repairs and rebuilding after disaster strikes. One in 13 American homeowners is uninsured, and the groups most likely to lack coverage are people of color, Zillow stated. The rising cost of home insurance premiums also increases the probability of mortgage delinquency. Homeowners without adequate heating and cooling and in areas with poor air quality, have higher mortality rates caused by extreme temperatures.
Homes in areas at risk are also likely to take longer to sell and require bigger discounts to lure buyers. “This makes racial groups that face higher climate risk more vulnerable to loss of wealth from home equity,” the report stated.
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