The digital event of the year, L'Attitude 2020, continues to put the numbers on the table when it comes to the growth and impact of Hispanics in the U.S.

During its second day of virtual sessions, Gary Acosta, Co-Founder and CEO of the National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals (NAHREP), and Noerena Limón, SVP of Public Policy and Industry Relations and NAHREP, discussed the State of Hispanic Wealth Survey, and its impactful findings.

Among them, the survey found Latinos were 25% more likely to own an investment property outside their primary residence than their non-Hispanic white counterparts.

“That’s astonishing to me,” Acosta said, “I know that Latinos were investing in real estate in a disproportionate manner, but I didn’t expect this.”

Limón also added, “We also saw they were also twice as likely as non-Hispanic white households to report using extra money- when they have extra money to invest- to invest in real estate. So, it’s a big deal.”

Acosta and Limón reflected on the importance of home equity and its direct correlation with wealth in the Hispanic market.

“Home equity is the largest source of wealth for most families in this country, but especially in the Latino community,” Acosta said.

“You look deeper into the data; you recognize the census tracks that have large Latino populations are actually outperforming those sectors themselves which is really emphasizing the point that Latinos are all in when it comes to real estate,” he continued.

The survey also found significant investment in the Hispanic business, which, for Acosta, it’s not so surprising.

“I’ve always known that Latinos tend to invest in things like small businesses. So, if they have extra money, they don’t ten to put it into stock investments, they tend to find another business to invest into. Now, we know that they’re investing in investment real estate in a way that outperforms what I thought was happening out there, which I think is really positive,” Acosta said.

However, it’s not all good news for Hispanics vis a vis real estate.

Limón noted that the survey also found that Hispanics were twice as likely to be behind on their mortgage due to COVID-19.

“That is something that we have yet to see what the effect will be,” she said.

The survey also found higher levels of student loan and automobile debt in the Hispanic demographic, which could impact their economic growth in the years to come.