Spatial Segregation of Financial Services in Racial and Ethnic Minority Neighborhoods

Aggie J. Noah, Pennsylvania State University

In this study I examine the association of neighborhood socio-demographic characteristics with the access to different types of financial institutions in Chicago. Using the U.S. Census data at the block group level and geocoded addresses of four types of financial institutions extracted using North American Industry Classification System code (NAICS), I examine whether racial and ethnic minority neighborhoods are segregated from access to financial services. Preliminary findings suggest that neighborhoods with a high percentage of African Americans have the most severe physical inaccessibility to all types of financial services, except for alternative banking (e.g. check cashing places). Utilizing spatial Poisson regression, I will examine how racial and ethnic minority neighborhoods are segregated from financial services and describe the patterns of spatial segregation of financial services.