What does redlined mean?
Redlined means that a person, property, business, or community has been subjected to discriminatory treatment, especially in housing or lending. The word is most common in the United States and usually refers to the practice of classifying an area as financially risky because of its racial, ethnic, or socioeconomic profile, thereby restricting access to mortgages, insurance, or investment. Historically, the term arose from maps used to designate neighborhoods as hazardous for lending. The verb redline describes the discriminatory act, while the adjective redlined describes its victims or the designated area: “redlined communities” have often endured reduced property values and limited investment. In editorial and administrative contexts, redlined may also mean marked with a red line or otherwise singled out for correction. Because redlining became closely associated with institutional discrimination, the modern term carries a strongly negative connotation and is important in discussions of housing, credit, and racial inequality.
To subject someone, a business, or a neighborhood to discriminatory lending, housing, or investment practices, especially based on the characteristics of its location.
"The bank redlined applicants from the district by denying their mortgage applications."
The historical sense involves institutional or economic discrimination and is chiefly used in the United States.
Denounced or excluded through discriminatory practices; marked in red or singled out for review.
"The redlined neighborhood experienced decades of disinvestment and declining property values."
Both “redlined” and “red-lined” are standard, with the hyphened form especially common in adjectival use.
On mid-20th-century mortgage maps, a single red line could shut an entire neighborhood out of the housing market.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does redlined come from?
The word combines the color red with line and entered American institutional use during the 1930s. Red lines on mortgage-risk maps designated areas regarded as unsuitable for investment, helping establish the discriminatory lending practice later known as redlining. The verb subsequently broadened to describe denial or exclusion based on discriminatory criteria.
Related word forms
How redlined is actually used
In contemporary American usage, redlining most often refers to discriminatory housing or financial practices affecting communities on the basis of race, ethnicity, or neighborhood demographics. Both “redlined” and “red-lined” are used, with the hyphen particularly common as an adjective. The broader institutional meaning is not limited literally to drawing lines on maps.
Easily confused with redlined
Redlined is the past tense and participial adjective of the verb redline, whereas redline names the practice or the marking itself.