Association between historical redlining and neighborhood deprivation in North Carolina

Abstract

Background and Aim In the late 1930s, the Home Owners’ Loan Corporation created maps that ranked neighborhoods considered high risk for mortgage lending; these ratings denied residents, usually racial, ethnic, and religious minorities, the opportunity to become homeowners and accumulate wealth. We explored whether historical designation as a redlined neighborhood predicted contemporary (2010) neighborhood-level deprivation in North Carolina (NC) cities (Asheville, Charlotte, Durham, Greensboro, Winston-Salem). Methods We examined 142 NC census tracts with historical redlining data. Because neighborhoods can be disadvantaged in many ways, a composite index representing poverty, occupation, housing, employment, and education was used for determining the relationship between neighborhood deprivation and having been previously redlined. To create the exposure, we overlayed a census tract shapefile layer on high-resolution digital maps of historical redlining, assigning a redlining rating of Best (N=15), Still Desirable (N=14), Declining (N=73), or Hazardous (N=40). The ratings were further combined to create exposure categories as follows: Best or Still Desirable (BSD, referent), Declining, Hazardous, and a combined redlined areas category that included both Declining and Hazardous (DH). Linear models estimated the associations between historical redlining ratings and contemporary neighborhood deprivation. Results Neighborhood deprivation scores ranged from -1.78 to 2.72, with a higher score indicating worse neighborhood deprivation. When comparing the combined redlined areas (DH) to BSD areas, we observed increasing neighborhood deprivation (1.34 increase in index score [95% CI: 1.01, 1.67]). We observed increasing neighborhood deprivation score when comparing Declining or Hazardous ratings individually to BSD areas (1.24 increase in score [95% CI: 0.93, 1.55]; 1.57 increase in score [95% CI: 1.15, 1.98], respectively). Conclusions Results suggest that redlined neighborhoods are associated with increased neighborhood deprivation 70 years later and may contribute to disparities in exposure to detrimental environments and associated effects on health and well-being. Keywords: Redlining, neighborhood deprivation, built environment