06/30/2026
Message from Bryan Ahn …. President of AREAA National
On Monday, June 22nd 2026, the Senate approved one of the largest pieces of bipartisan legislation on housing that our country has ever seen, the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act. This bill includes provisions for zoning deregulation, supports community banks, and creates systems to reduce appraisal bias. AREAA supported this bill in our Three-Point Plan. 2 days later, Trump cancelled the signing. His cited reason was that he refused to sign the bill unless Congress passed a strict voter ID law.
Here is the bottom line: AANHPI voters are one of the most independent voting blocs in the country, and failing to deliver on housing affordability will lose our community’s vote.
Affordability is the top concern for AANHPIs, and 80% of AANHPIs believe that the American Dream is central to this country’s identity. But now, due to concerns of discrimination, low affordability, and instability, only 30% say the U.S. is a great place to live for immigrants, while 64% say it used to be a great place.
My stake in this issue is personal. As I’ve shared in previous AREAA publications, my family is a classic example of the American Dream working beautifully. My parents moved here with little money in the hopes of securing a better future for their children. And through hard work, and the stability and economic growth of homeownership, we’ve created enduring generational wealth that will give my children opportunities that I didn’t have. And we are not alone. As we saw in our study with the Urban Institute, once households enter homeownership, median home equity grows steadily over time, rising from about $180,000 within the first five years after purchase to more than $340,000 by years 6 through 10 and continuing to grow with longer tenure. That’s the American Dream. That is the promise that continues to bring AANHPI immigrants to this wonderful country. And that’s what AANHPI voters will be looking for in a leader.
Our community has made remarkable strides. The AANHPI homeownership rate has climbed from 52% in 1990 to 63% today — an 11-point gain over three decades driven largely by immigrant households pursuing the American Dream. AANHPI households are the fastest-growing group of homeowners in the United States, with our population now totaling over 24 million people.
But the headline number masks a harder truth. A 13-percentage-point gap still separates AANHPI from white homeownership rates. Asian mortgage applicants face denial rates of 9.2% compared to 5.8% for non-Hispanic white applicants — even at comparable income and credit levels. First-time AANHPI buyers access government and nonprofit homeownership assistance at less than half the rate of Black buyers. And our community is disproportionately concentrated in the highest-cost metros — nearly 47% of AANHPI households live in just three states: California, New York, and Texas, precisely the markets where the housing shortage has hit hardest.
That is why AREAA’s mission continues to be of utmost importance. Our national network of incredibly successful professionals and inspiring leaders are able to drive unprecedented growth within their communities. AREAA’s members and leaders act as vocal and outspoken advocates, proudly being the voice for a community that does not always have one on the national scale. To my AREAA family: thank you for your continued dedication to advancing homeownership, building generational wealth, and championing the dream that brought so many of our families to this country in the first place.
With gratitude,
2026 AREAA National President
Bryan Ahn
