Study: An Arrest Could Prevent Some Millennials From Owning a Home

So, you got arrested a few years ago but weren’t incarcerated. You’ve put the incident behind you but now you want to buy a house. Will that arrest hamper your ability to become a homeowner even if you didn’t serve time?

Yes and no.

Yes, according to a study by Rice University assistant professor of sociology, Brielle Bryan. Based on Bryan’s paper, “Homeownership Experiences Following Criminal Justice Contact,” she found that even low-level contact with the criminal justice system appears to play a part in millennials not being able to buy homes as quickly as their peers.

Using data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997, Bryan looks at how arrests, criminal charges, convictions, and incarcerations affect not only homeownership but also the age at which an individual first bought a home and the duration of homeownership. 

In the paper, Bryan states she found “robust evidence that not just incarceration but also arrest, criminal charges, and conviction are associated with lower probability of homeownership, later entry into homeownership, and shortened duration of homeownership.”

The paper notes the most immediate way homeownership potential may be affected by an arrest is financial. Even without incarceration, you may lose time off work – or possibly your job – due to pretrial detention, court appearances, or meetings with a probation officer.

An arrest also costs money in the form of fines, fees, restitution, and other court costs. If you are looking for a job, potential employers may run background checks that include arrest records. All these factors may affect your ability to pay a mortgage or even save for a down payment. 

Difficult, But Not Impossible

Does this mean you will never realize the American dream of homeownership? No. The consequences of an arrest may make homeownership more difficult, but the arrest itself does not prevent you from buying a home. 

“I’m not aware of anything that prevents you from purchasing, buying, owning, or selling real estate,” said Evelyn Hardwick, Senior Vice President and Branch Manager of Republic Title of Texas. “Maybe it affects your ability to get gainful employment, which then makes it harder to qualify [for a mortgage] if you don’t have an income that supports what you’re looking for. But that’d be the only drawback I could see. We don’t run any type of background check whatsoever. You can buy a home if you have the money to purchase it.”

If homeownership is in your plans, start saving money and don’t let that arrest a few years back stop you from finding your dream home.