Without a good credit score, buying a home or borrowing money is more difficult, holding Black Americans back from building wealth. To understand the impact that credit scores have on the racial wealth gap, it is important to understand the history of the credit system. On a 30-year, $200,000 mortgage with a FICO credit score between 700 and 759, one could expect to receive a 2.56% interest rate. But a person with a credit score between 660 and 679 could end up paying an additional $14,914 — 677 is the average credit score for African Americans compared to white Americans at 734. Indeed, the credit gap is just another symptom of systemic racism, and finding ways to achieve parity in employment and wages would go a long way to closing the credit gap.

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