Achieving the Dream Of Owning One's Home

Owning a home has always been central to the American dream, and not just for the native-born population. A new Census Bureau study shows remarkable numbers of immigrants are now homeowners. As of 2002, 68 percent of naturalized citizens owned their homes—nearly as large a proportion as the 70 percent of native-born Americans doing so. Perhaps more remarkable, 35 percent of noncitizen immigrants were homeowners. Among blacks, Asians/Pacific Islanders and Hispanics, the ownership rates were actually higher among naturalized citizens than for their native-born counterparts (see the chart).