Key Findings from the Community Cohort

The Community Cohort (Cohort) is a group of local women and people whose lived experiences reflect womanhood—especially Black and Latine parents—who helped shape this report by sharing their real-life experiences, priorities, and interpretations so the data reflects what thriving (and struggling) actually looks like in our community.

Racial disparities in access to affordable housing, particularly for Black residents, are large.

• The cohort observed that this is an indication that the system is built to disadvantage Black residents and advantage white residents – it’s systemic oppression.
• Systemic barriers make it challenging for Black and Latine women in particular to be financially stable, even when they “make the right decisions.”

High housing values are concentrated in a relatively small number of census tracts

Racial disparities in who can afford to purchase a house are stark, particularly for Black women.

Racial disparities in the number of census tracts residents can afford to rent or buy in are huge, even when you break it down by household type.

• For example, the median percentage of the census tracts in which Black households headed by single females could afford to rent is 23%.
• This shows that income and housing costs are significantly constraining where families of color can live.

There are ~10,000 units too few for lower-income renters and ~10,000 units too many for middle- to higher-income residents.

Alongside the data, the Cohort offers insights that highlight how longstanding racial and gender inequities influence who has access to stable and affordable homes. 

This section focuses on affordable housing, and the Cohort felt it was important to frame this discussion with some information about homelessness in Forsyth County because homelessness is impacted by housing affordability. People are currently experiencing homelessness in Forsyth County. According to the 2025 PIT Count, 478 people were experiencing homelessness, 42% of whom were unsheltered. Homelessness affects people across many races, ethnicities, and genders: a third of those counted were women and girls, and about half were Black or African American.”

Housing Affordability

This indicator estimates the percentage of census tracts in which residents can afford to rent or buy homes and reports the median percentage of census tracts that different groups of people can afford. The median percentage means that about half of the households in that group could afford a smaller percentage of census tracts, and about half could afford more.

This measure uses the rent and housing value data from the Median Rent and Housing Value by Census Tract measure to estimate the cost of renting or buying a home.

For this measure, rent is considered affordable if it is less than 30% of a household’s monthly income, and home values are considered affordable if they are less than three times the household’s annual income.

The CBPR cohort felt like it was important to emphasize that homes may actually be worth more than their residents estimate, especially if homeowners have not been paying attention to the housing costs around them. And, the value of houses in general may be different than the values of housing that is for sale. For example, between 2019 and 2023, the median house value reported to the Census Bureau was about $243,000 in 2024 dollars. Redfin, a real estate website, indicates that the median sale price of a house that was sold in Forsyth County, NC, in October 2025 was $305,000. The cohort also felt that it was important to emphasize that a limited number of houses are up for sale at a particular time. For example, Redfin reports that 443 homes were sold in Forsyth County during October of 2025.

This analysis also does not take into account savings, credit history, or racial discrimination in renting and lending, which the cohort identified as other factors that influence the ability to rent or own a home.

The CBPR cohort also thought that it was important to look at the cost of rent and the value of homes in the context of other neighborhood factors, like poverty.

The map below shows the poverty rate for each census tract in Forsyth County over the time period between 2019 and 2023. Click on the map to go to an interactive version of the map.

More information that the cohort suggested could provide important context for this information can be found at the Forsyth County Neighborhood Opportunity Atlas.

Data Visualization

Median Percentage of Census Tracts Households Can Afford to Rent or Buy In (5-year Periods from 2009-2013 to 2019-2023)

Community Voices

Women repeatedly describe housing as a series of forced tradeoffs. For some, it is impossible to find a home that is simultaneously affordable, safe, and culturally affirming.

One mother explains that as her children grew older, the social costs of living in predominantly white spaces became intolerable. Housing decisions were never just about a mortgage or square footage; they were about how much racial isolation her Black children would be expected to navigate every day:

“We cannot go to an all white church. We cannot add any more all white spaces to the thing at this point.”

She and her partner narrowed options using overlapping filters—crime data, school location, price, and racial dynamics. Potential homes that met one need often failed another. In order to leave a higher‑crime neighborhood, they ultimately moved into a whiter, more expensive community they did not want to be in. They gave up a culturally affirming environment and social‑emotional safety for their family in exchange for greater physical safety and higher housing costs. Stability, in her story, is the outcome of eliminating unacceptable risks one by one until only a few painful, imperfect choices remain.

One woman and her partner tried to rent their first home after college with steady but low‑status jobs and no rental history. On paper, they were not “ideal tenants.” They only secured a lease because his parents co‑signed, bypassing institutional standards through family relationships. Rent then climbed by about $100 every year, making a modest home steadily less affordable over time.

[…] distance and transportation reshape what “affordable” means. A home that looks manageable on paper becomes unaffordable once she adds rideshares, longer commutes, and time away from children. A place is only affordable if it does not quietly drain what little margin is left beyond rent and utilities.

One survivor of domestic violence explains that a court order did little to protect her. Her children’s father continued to break in and harass them. Because she could not afford more expensive parts of town, she was repeatedly placed wherever housing providers had availability, even when these placements kept her within reach of her abuser. She describes being unable to sleep, unsure if the home assigned to her would actually keep her family safe.

Adults Who Could Buy a Home

This measure is an estimate of the share of adults (age 18 and older) living in households with incomes high enough to purchase the median, or middle, cost home in Forsyth County. To make this estimate, analysts used financial guidance that many households can afford to purchase a house that is two to three times their annual household income. To avoid overestimating how many people could afford a house, analysts used the higher end of that advice and estimated that a household could afford to buy a middle-value home if its value was less than three times their annual income.

The Community Cohort directing this report felt like it was important to emphasize that homes may actually be worth more than their residents estimate, especially if homeowners have not been paying attention to the housing costs around them. And, the value of houses in general may be different than the values of housing that is for sale. For example, between 2019 and 2023, the median house value reported to the Census Bureau was about $243,000 in 2024 dollars. Redfin, a real estate website, indicates that the median sale price of a house that was sold in Forsyth County, NC, in October 2025 was $305,000. The cohort also felt that it was important to emphasize that a limited number of houses are up for sale at a particular time. For example, Redfin reports that 443 homes were sold in Forsyth County during October of 2025.

This analysis also does not take into account savings, credit history, or racial discrimination in renting and lending, which the cohort identified as other factors that influence the ability to rent or own a home.

Data Visualization

Percent of Adults Living in Households with Enough Income to Purchase Home (5-year Periods from 2009-2013 to 2019-2023)

Community Voices

[…] another tried to buy a home alone after divorce. The only asset she had was four acres of land from the settlement—deeply meaningful to her, but functionally invisible to lenders. Because her name had been on property deeds during marriage, she no longer qualified as a first‑time homebuyer, yet she had none of the wealth or security that ownership is supposed to produce. In her words, she was treated like someone with “no assets,” disqualified from support for having had a life before.

Change in Home Values and Income

This measure looks at how median house values and median employment income have changed since 2013. The percent change shows whether the median (middle) house value or employment income is higher or lower compared to its 2013 level. A positive number means it increased, and a negative number means it decreased.

The Community cohort directing this report felt it was important to emphasize that homes may actually be worth more than their residents estimate, especially if homeowners have not been paying attention to the housing costs around them. And, the value of houses in general may be different than the values of housing that is for sale. For example, between 2019 and 2023 the median house value reported to the Census Bureau was about $243,000 in 2024 dollars. Redfin, a real estate website, indicates that the median sale price of a house that was sold in Forsyth County, NC, in October 2025 was $305,000.

Data Visualization

Percent Change in Median Employment Income and Home Value in Forsyth County, NC in 2024 Dollars (5-year periods from 2009-2013 to 2019-2023)

Homeownership Rate

The homeownership rate is the percentage of Forsyth County residents who live in a home owned by someone in the household, including both those with a mortgage and those who own their homes free and clear.

Data Visualization

Homeownership Rate (5-year periods from 2009-2013 to 2019-2023)

Community Voices

“It’s old and it’s small, but it’s ours. Nobody can take it from me and my family.”

Affordable Housing Shortage

Measure Description and Context: For each income band, analysts compared renter households to the number of units that are both affordable (costing no more than 30% of household income) for that band and available to rent.

• Positive numbers = shortage (not enough affordable, available units).
• Negative numbers = surplus (more units than renter households).

AMI stands for Area Median Income, the middle income for the Winston-Salem, NC, HUD Metro Area. These income ranges take family size into account and are different for different family types. The list below provides example income ranges for a family of four for the fiscal year 2025.

• 30% AMI: $26,000
• 50% AMI: $43,350
• 80% AMI: $69,350

Data Visualization

Affordable Housing Shortage (2017-2021)

Community Voices

Due to their immigration status, they often live in overcrowded conditions, paying exorbitant rents for dilapidated spaces, disproportionate prices for homes that don’t meet basic standards, and sometimes facing eviction threats or unjustified rent increases. These women are often excluded from public assistance programs and are forced to accept whatever they can find, even when the housing is unsafe for them and their children. I know that home stability is fundamental to the well-being of families, but I also know that for many of my clients, a decent home is sometimes a distant dream.

Youth who age out of care face higher rates of homelessness, unemployment, education disruption, and incarceration than the general population. The National Youth in Transition Database (NYTD) tracks outcomes of youth who age out by following up with them at ages 17, 19, and 21. Housing instability continues to remain one of the most significant challenges faced by these youth. Oftentimes, they report either being homeless or bouncing from place to place. Housing instability compounds other issues such as education progress and employment due to the foundational need to have a stable home to return to while attempting to meet educational goals or employment requirements. It can become cyclical because then in turn, they are not able to have sufficient financial resources to stabilize where they live. When a young adult has to focus on where they are going to lay their head that night, it makes it impossible to think about their future much past tomorrow. Goals such as career exploration, job training, and future financial planning all become out of reach because they are focused on their most basic immediate needs.