“He said, ‘Listen, you little [N-word], I’m not selling my house to you,’ and slammed the phone down.”
That happened to Chandra Patterson, a realtor and regional vice president
Since 1994, Patterson worked in Hampton Roads, Va., an area she describes as not racially or politically inclusive. Patterson always makes sure to wear her badge and dress professionally when working in affluent neighborhoods, as she’s had multiple run-ins with law enforcement and harassment from community members.
She diffused situations where white neighbors saw her showing an open house and threatened to call the police. In another showing appointment, the homeowner forgot to disable the alarm and it triggered a call to the local precinct.
“I was in the process of turning off the lights to lock up, then the police came. I had my paperwork for the listing and my card,” Patterson said. “That officer had a hand on his gun.”
Overall, 41% of employees throughout professional and financial services reported personally facing some form of workplace discrimination,
Among those discriminated women of color, 77% said they faced racially driven bias, while 37% and 31% respectively pointed to age and gender identity. As people and companies make strides to eliminate discrimination, bad actors hide their prejudices, making it a silent threat, according to LaTisha Grant, NAREB Women’s Council president and executive managing broker at TAS Realty Group.
“There’s no longer that big ‘no Blacks’ or ‘no women’ sign on the door, now it’s behind a curtain,” Grant said. “I had an African American female client in a situation with a builder and he told me, ‘She should just be glad she's getting a house.’ We did not move forward with him and I spoke to an attorney. But because it was verbal, it became my word against theirs and nothing could be done about it.”
Casual, sometimes even unintentionally offensive incidents are more commonplace than overtly hostile exchanges like that one. Discrimination comes in many forms and from many sources. A 53% share of those who reported experiencing it said their manager was the source, 42% said someone higher than their boss, 38% said co-workers, 20% said clients and 11% said the human relations department.
“Co-workers have made comments like, ‘You got your hair did.’ Not all Black people say that,” said Amelia Mitchell, loan officer
These types of interactions happen so quickly and awkwardly that Mitchell has a hard time reacting in the moment.
“Do I go back and give an education class on why you don’t say those things? Then it turns into, ‘Oh, she’s that one,’” Mitchell continued. “I’m straight to the point, have a strong personality and I get passionate about things I believe in. I think that sometimes can come across as being the angry Black woman.”
Mitchell also recalled being fired for “insubordination” from a prior lending company after raising concerns about unfair working conditions in a meeting. When she asked how she was insubordinate, the company didn’t give her an answer. It left her in a position to either seek legal action or just move on and she chose the latter, deciding the time, effort and hoops she would have to jump through wouldn’t be worth it.
Proving discriminatory practices can be difficult and the options for resolving them, if litigation isn’t an option, include talking to the human relations department or filing grievances with the proper professional association, advocacy group or the Better Business Bureau.
“You need to do what you're comfortable with,” advises Jess Kennedy, co-founder and COO of Beeline. “If you feel like something illegal is happening, you need to file a formal complaint with HR. If you feel like that's not going anywhere, then you need to go talk to someone yourself, who can help you preserve your rights.”
The lack of diversity or inclusion pushes qualified people out of positions they’d otherwise stay in. A 47% share of BIPOC and Latinx women surveyed have left jobs for that reason, compared to 20% of BIPOC and Latinx men, 16% of white women and 2% of white men. However, some will stay in a toxic environment and try to overcome unfair conditions.
“I and several other agents of color don’t get good leads, they typically go to other agents,” Patterson said. “I’m not the right shade for getting that type of business, mine are in a lower price range.”
Patterson noted that these transgressions caused struggles early in her career and she felt slighted because others around her enjoyed more success from the advantages they were handed. She adapted to the lack of lead generation and created enough business with her experience and networking.
Separately, the National Urban League and Fannie Mae partnered in 2018 — with the Appraisal Institute and Freddie Mac joining later and Chase Home Lending providing $3 million in funding — for the Appraiser Diversity Initiative, which aims to commit resources to get more diversity in the field and reduce the
Those programs and others like it focus on tackling the issue at the systemic level and
“I had a confrontation with a mortgage brokerage and one of their agents used the term, ‘you people.’ We're all individuals,” said NAREB President Lydia Pope. “Companies should educate about different cultures, that way, you may be enlightened on something you just didn't understand, why what you said was wrong and why it offended someone. But a person has to want to learn.”
Diversity education forums and increasing a company’s racial and socio-economic mix can lead to employees feeling safer and less isolated. In addition to those actions, Grant, Kennedy, Mitchell, Patterson and Pope all said communication, in some form, would be the best way to end discrimination. Open, constructive and likely uncomfortable dialogues would give insights to different points of view and those conversations can break barriers.
“We won’t understand what we haven’t experienced,” said Kennedy. “If you don't have all types of people sitting around your table, your table’s weak.”
