The region of Charlotte has one of the lowest rates of concentrated poverty for U.S. metropolitan areas. Concentrated poverty may be relatively low because poverty is more clustered and less concentrated in any one place in the region. Most cities in the region, particularly Charlotte, have both poor and wealthy neighborhoods. With all the good economic indicators for the Charlotte region, some disturbing trends can be found, particularly in the differences between poverty rates between African Americans and whites. More than half of high poverty block groups with major African-American populations were in the area surrounding downtown Charlotte to the north and west.
People of color have lower incomes.
However, the lack of wealth can also be explained by the inability to make returns through investment in the marketplace. One way wealth can be created is in the housing market. In Charlotte, disparities in the housing market can make it difficult for African Americans to create wealth. A major way wealth can be created is though returns on investment in housing. Housing values and the rate of change in value help determine a successful investment.