Minority groups have a harder time accessing mortgages in the U.S., including here in Miami.

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In the Miami metro area, 21.2 percent of mortgage applicants are denied in their quest for conventional mortgages, according to a new analysis from Zillow; that’s not only substantially higher than the 12.4 percent U.S. average, but furthermore, all minority mortgage applicants in Miami had higher denial rates than the national averages.

To be fair, the national averages were not necessarily encouraging, particularly when comparing denial rates for white applicants to those of minority candidates. For instance, though the denial rate fell for white applicants was 10.4 percent, it was 21.9 and 27.6 percent for Hispanic and African American applicants, respectively.

“Strikingly Unequal” Housing Behind Denial Rates

Stan Humphries, the chief economist at Zillow, said that a stark inequality is behind the aforementioned stats.

“While many of the disparities between the experiences of white communities and minority communities during the housing boom and bust can be explained by plain differences in finances and geography, it’s clear that the housing playing field remains strikingly unequal in this country,” Humphries said.

The key economic trends, Humphries stated, are twofold: first, both Hispanic and African American mortgage applicants make roughly $20,000 less per year than white applicants; and second, Hispanic/African American communities experienced both big run-ups during the housing boom and terrible drops during the downturn.

Not all is lost, though. Humphries did note that home prices are expected to pick up in those communities over 2015 and 2016, and that recent data shows that minority homebuyers have found success with FHA-backed loans.

See our graph below for some additional perspective: