As our nation continues to fight to ensure fair opportunity for all Americans, there is a major stumbling block in the pursuit of economic equality: lack of access to homeownership.

The Fair Housing Act of 1968 was implemented to create a fair and equitable housing system for all. Sadly, 53 years later, homeownership remains more elusive than ever, blocking wealth creation for millions of families.

The sad truth

Today, the disparity between the percentage of homeowners in the white community and those in the black community is greater than it has been in the past 50 years.

Unfortunately, we can now say, without a doubt, that the intention behind the 1968 law has not been fully realized. There is currently a 30.1 percentage point gap between the number of white and black homeowners. In parts of the country like southern Nevada, the gap is at its highest level since the last days of segregation.

For other minority groups, the picture is no better. In the Asian American community, only 60.7% are homeowners, and in the Hispanic American community, that number is only 48.1%. However, the inequality does not end with race.

Discrimination against potential buyers of real estate based on their sexual orientation or identity is illegal in only less than half of the states in the United States. The current system does not do enough to deter inequality and is difficult to navigate, with two in three buyers or sellers saying the process was unnecessarily complex.

Why is this important?

What is important to understand is that it is not just about allowing people of all races and backgrounds equal access to homeownership, which is, of course, imperative. It’s about what this house means for financial stability and opportunities for these families. Owners are on average 40 times richer than tenants.

With every family unable to own a home, there is a multigenerational snowball effect. The likelihood of their children owning a home remains low, perpetuating a chain of economic inequalities that could have been avoided by a more just and equitable housing system.

Related: First-time buyers struggle with scarce supply and rising prices

The key factors

While it’s clear that historical inequality and systemic racism played a role in our coming here, there are a few key factors that disproportionately contributed to this disparity in homeownership. According to a 2019 research report titled “Explaining the Black-White Homeownership Gap: A Closer Look at the Gaps between Local Markets,” variables that require the most attention to implement real change include income, education, credit rating, and marital status.

Being able to qualify to buy a home and afford the repayments is probably the biggest contributor here. In 2017, the median income for a white household was $ 61,363, compared to $ 38,183 for black households. Even in households with the same income, the homeownership rate is still much lower for black Americans.

Research also shows that education levels have a strong correlation with income. Less than 24% of black households have members with a tertiary education while in white US households, that number is nearly 39%. Again, even when we compare households with the same education level across the racial spectrum, minority groups still own fewer properties.

There is very little research available on the correlation between credit scores in different racial groups, but it is a critical factor in taking out mortgage loans. A study, conducted in 2016, indicates that while more than 50% of white Americans in the credit system had a score above 700 points, only 20% of black Americans had the same score.

Marital status improves the chances of owning a property, as well as the additional benefits that come with it. Household income is higher and married couples are much more likely to qualify for a mortgage than single applicants. Black households are more than 50% less likely to be married than white households, stacking the lot even more in favor of the majority.

Related: 4 reasons homeownership remains a fantastic investment

How do we fix this?

There is no doubt that a change in fair housing legislation needs to happen; however, the legislation is only a starting point.

There are both economic and educational barriers for every American to enjoy the financial stability and wealth creation that come with owning a home.

We believe it starts with education:

• Better financial education and literacy. Income, debt and creditworthiness are key factors for a buyer to qualify for a mortgage. Therefore, the home buying process begins long before you apply for a loan. We need better financial education in our K-12 schools. Let’s teach FICO scores alongside algebra. Let’s teach the power of interest and investing alongside social studies.
• Better education for home buyers. The process is unnecessarily, and perhaps intentionally, complex. No one ever teaches you the down payment, what a title policy is, or the process of bidding on a house. Most buyers have no idea that they are indirectly paying their agent thousands of dollars to help them find and buy a home. Often, first-time homebuyers rely on their parents, family and friends as they begin the process. For some first generation home buyers, they are at a disadvantage and the dream of owning a home often seems like a pipe dream. We would like to see real estate associations partnering with public educators to develop programs that demystify home ownership and the home buying process.
• Better promotion of programs that provide resources, coaching and funding assistance. We need to raise awareness of existing programs available to help homeowners, such as Make Homes Possible, which provides black families with access to payment assistance, housing counselors and educational resources. There are at least 12 other programs for US citizens funded by the federal government, nonprofits, and private businesses that don’t often get high profile. Let’s make sure every potential buyer knows where to start and where they can find financial help.

In addition, let’s change the status of contractors’ agents to W2 employees. This will make them less dependent on commissions and more likely to provide non-discriminatory, high-quality service in the best interest of everyone, not certain customers.

It is not an easy problem to solve. It is not just the government’s responsibility to solve it. It will take many mission-driven businesses, associations, and communities to take seriously removing the barriers that prevent many Americans from owning homes. It starts with awareness and education. Knowledge is power, even the power to buy a house.

No matter who you are, where you grew up, your socioeconomic status, your race, your culture or your identity, you should have a path to owning your own place. A place where you can dream. A place where you can grow up. A place where you can build a financial base that will impact your children and your children’s future. Individual financial stability and economic prosperity are at stake. Everyone should be able to own a home.

It’s a crisis. We need integrated solutions, and we can start today, right now. Let’s start making homeownership possible for all Americans, not just those for whom the current system works.

With a handful of changes, we can start to make housing more accessible to everyone. By engaging all stakeholders in an effort towards equality for every potential homeowner, we can enable more people than ever to start building wealth through affordable housing.

Related: 8 Proven Ways To Make Money In Real Estate