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A segregated, all-black suburb on Long Island, where Vince Mereday was forced to move after he was unable to buy a home in all-white Levittown. Even though Lakeview and Levittown houses both sold for the same price in the 1940s—the equivalent of $75,000 in 2017—70 years later, Levittown’s houses are worth more than triple Lakeview’s ($350,000, versus $100,000). This shows how segregation pays dividends to white people over time, as property appreciates faster in all-white neighborhoods (largely because wealthy home buyers are disproportionately white). Lakeview is distinct from Lakeview Terrace, an all-white housing project built in Cleveland that Rothstein mentions in Chapter Two.
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Lakeview Term Timeline in The Color of Law
The timeline below shows where the term Lakeview appears in The Color of Law. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 4: “Own Your Own Home”
...nephew Vince tried, but failed, and had to buy in a nearby black suburb called Lakeview instead. Although he was a veteran, Vince could not get favorable Veterans Administration (VA) loans...
(full context)
Chapter 11: Looking Forward, Looking Back
...of $75,000 (in 2017 dollars), and Vince Mereday’s home in the African American neighborhood of Lakeview would have cost at least as much. Today, Levittown homes are worth more than $350,000,...
(full context)
