Freddie Mac has embarked on a comprehensive effort to better understand the key drivers contributing to the appraisal gap found in homes in Black and Latino neighborhoods.

It's a situation that stretches back decades, at least as far as when baseball superstar Jackie Robinson tried to buy a home in the middle of the 20th century. Various studies and analysis have occurred since, resulting in mostly consistent findings.

"Our goal is to develop solutions to this persistent problem, including appraisal best practices, uniform standards for automated valuation models, enhanced consumer disclosures, improved value processes, and revised fair lending exam procedures and risk assessments," Michael Bradley, senior vice president of modeling, econometrics, data science and analytics in Freddie Mac's Single-Family division, said in a prepared statement.