Race, Wealth, and Inter-Neighborhood Migration

Scott J. South, University at Albany, State University of New York
Kyle D. Crowder, Western Washington University
Erick Chavez, University at Albany, State University of New York

Racial differences in wealth have long been thought to underlie racial differences in residential segregation and neighborhood attainment, but research supporting this claim is limited. We use data from the 1988-2001 waves of the Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID), in conjunction with tract-level decennial census data, to examine the effects of household and parental wealth on the migration of black and white families between neighborhoods comprised of varying percentages of anglos (i.e., non-Hispanic whites). We find generally modest effects of wealth on these patterns of inter-neighborhood migration. Consistent with the weak version of the place stratification model, the effects of both family and parental wealth are stronger among black households than among white households. However, racial differences in the levels and effects of wealth can account for only a small portion of the pronounced racial difference in migration into neighborhoods containing large percentages of anglo residents.