Bank of America is launching a mortgage program that requires no down payment or closing costs to help boost Black and Latino homeownership in five U.S. cities, but Phoenix didn’t make the list.

The pilot program, called Community Affordable Loan Solution, will be available in Charlotte, N.C., Dallas, Detroit, Los Angeles and Miami neighborhoods that have not yet been publicly identified.

The lender said it could be expanded to other cities but didn't specify which ones.

The loans also won’t require mortgage insurance or a minimum credit score.

Black homeownership has dropped in Arizona over the past 50 years, according to Arizona State University’s Morrison Institute for Public Policy.

Latino homeownership in Arizona fell during the 2008 housing crash and hasn’t rebounded.

In 2019, white homeownership was 71.1%, according to the latest census data. That year, the Latino homeownership rate was 53.9% and Black homeownership was 34.6%.

Eligibility for the Bank of America loans will be based on income and location, but details about those specific guidelines have not been announced.

The program is also available to homebuyers who aren’t Black or Latino in the selected neighborhoods.

'It can impact anyone': Experts, community discuss affordable housing

ASU School of Social Transformation professor Rashad Shabazz said lender discrimination continues to hurt people of color and the Phoenix-area neighborhoods where they live.

Nationally, the U.S. homeownership rate reached 65.5% in 2020, according to the National Association of Realtors. But the homeownership rate was about 43% for Black people and 51% for Latino people.

The research also found Black and Hispanic mortgage applicants were much more likely to be turned down for loans.

"Homeownership strengthens our communities and can help individuals and families to build wealth over time," said AJ Barkley, head of neighborhood and community lending for Bank of America, in a statement. "Our Community Affordable Loan Solution will help make the dream of sustained homeownership attainable for more Black and Hispanic families.”

Shabazz said funds for house repairs and subsidizing the mortgage for the first few years of the loan would make the program stronger for Black and Latino homebuyers, who have been shut out by too many lenders for decades.

Bank of America agreed to pay $335 million to settle allegations in 2011 that its Countrywide Financial division charged higher rates and fees to about 200,000 Black and Latino borrowers, who qualified for less costly mortgages.

Reach the reporter at catherine.reagor@arizonarepublic.com or 602-444-8040. Follow her on Twitter @CatherineReagor.

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Phoenix not included in Bank of America no down payment program