The Role of Financial, Emotional, and Informational Support in Asset Accumulation

In the economic recession of 2008, Hispanics lost two thirds of their household wealth creating wider wealth disparities between White and Hispanic households (Kochhar et al., 2011). While we know lots about financial support among low-income families, few studies explored alternative support families provide home buyers in the process of purchasing a home. The purpose of this study was to expand the understanding of how different levels of financial, informational, and emotional support affect the process of purchasing a home in the predominantly Hispanic, low-income community. This study was a longitudinal, qualitative research examining the barriers and facilitators of support among low-income Hispanic residents receiving homebuyer workshops and individual counseling from East Los Angeles Community Corporation (ELACC). A comparative analysis was conducted on two key participants chosen from the analytical memo database based on the participants with the lowest level of support and highest level of support. Findings revealed the key participants??? support was a blend of facilitation and barriers in the process of purchasing a home. Informational support was found to be the most desired by the participants, which stressed the importance of first-time homeowner programs such as ELACC. Understanding the obstacles that these populations face to save money and accumulate assets is important for social worker practice since social workers are encouraged to purse social injustices