Resident:
Herbert Booker Sr., Northeast Oklahoma City
Context: Booker, a retired Oklahoma City police officer, has lived on the northeast side for nearly 80 years. He’s noticed a decline in the cleanliness of the area, which he believes stems from the increase in renters versus homeowners. Northeast Oklahoma City has high rates of abandoned homes and renters and low rates of home ownership compared with many other parts of the city.
Response:
Shannon Entz, Strong Neighborhoods Initiative Senior Planner
Context: Lower-income areas tend to see more residents renting their homes, which can have a detrimental impact on a community, Entz said. Renters might make less of an effort to know their neighbors and take care of their homes, which can entice more crime and diminish the look of the neighborhood.
A Deeper Look:
Leased Out
The dark green sections of this map indicate areas that had higher percentages of renter-occupied homes in 2013. To see the correlation between resident income and home ownership, touch a section of the map for the median household income and the percentage of renters in that census tract.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey.
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