On March 30th, the New York Community Service Society released a study called "Housing the City of Immigrants." According to the report, overall, immigrants face more pressure in housing situations than local residents. Immigrants spend a lot more on housing expenses. They also have to deal with more crowded housing than local residents.
The study shows that among the Asian immigrants, 16 percent of the first-generation immigrants live below the poverty line, but 41 percent of them own homes. For second-generation immigrants, who have higher incomes, only 5 percent of them live below the poverty line.
Tom Waters, the Housing Policy Analyst from the Community Services Society, said that the study was based on the 2008 census that showed New York City had 2.98 million new immigrants – 31 percent Latinos; 24 percent Asians, and 18 percent Africans. Statistics show that, although their income is not very high, first-generation Chinese and Korean immigrants own more homes than other immigrant groups. Second-generation immigrants own more homes, 42 percent, than first- and third-generation immigrants, indicating that perhaps many of them inherit their home.
The study shows that 20 percent of the first-generation Chinese and Korean immigrants live below the poverty line, which is higher than other immigrant groups. However, their median salary of $42,300 is not too far away from the average median salary of $45,000. The study shows that the differences among the groups are a result of educational gaps. Low-income immigrants are immigrant families, whereas the high-income immigrants are professionals.
First-generation Asian immigrants who own homes, 41 percent, are second behind former soviet immigrants, 47 percent, who are homeowners. About 9 percent of first-generation Chinese and Korean immigrants live in government-subsidized housing, and about 22 percent live in low-income housing. In comparison, more than 60 percent of the Dominican immigrants live in low-income housing.
The study also shows that second-generation Chinese and Korean immigrants face more financial pressure than first-generation immigrants, which is common among other immigrant groups as well, primarily due to differences in educational attainment. Among first-generation Asian immigrants, 16 percent of them live below the poverty line and have a median income of $48,000. For second-generation Asian immigrants, only 5 percent of them live below the poverty line and have a median income is $72,000, which is much higher than the average median income of $55,000.
The study pointed out that substantial income differences among immigrant groups affect their housing, but each immigrant group evolves a different locational pattern that affects its housing conditions and opportunities. Some immigrant groups – such as
Dominicans and Mexicans – tend to have low incomes, similar to those of non-immigrant black and Latino households. Dominicans and other Caribbeans, for example, have to deal with exposure to badly maintained housing. The borough of Queens has the largest proportion of immigrant and second-generation households: 70 percent. Dominicans cluster in Manhattan and the West Bronx, while other Caribbeans and those from the former Soviet Union have settled in Brooklyn.
