Nonprofit’s Goal: 4M Latino Homeowners by 2030
A nonprofit organization, UnidosUS, wants to help Hispanic families build generational wealth through homeownership. Wells Fargo kicked off a $100M funding effort.
WASHINGTON – UnidosUS, a nonprofit, nonpartisan Hispanic civil rights organization, has launched HOME (Home Ownership Means Equity), a new initiative that seeks to push systemic change and help create four million new Latino homeowners by 2030.
Wells Fargo is the first anchor funder of the HOME initiative. Of the $25 million in grant funding, $10 million will support the development of the HOME initiative, matching a $10 million investment from UnidosUS and kick-starting a $100 million fundraising effort.
“Homeownership has long provided the most effective pathway for families to build generational wealth in America,” says Janet Murguía, president and CEO of UnidosUS. “While Latinos continue to face barriers in becoming homeowners, they also have the greatest opportunity for homeownership growth in the U.S.”
Murguía says HOME has a comprehensive strategy to “shape needed policy reforms, while providing tools and resources Latinos need to successfully navigate the homebuying process.”
She says the program isn’t just smart policy – it will “pay economic dividends to neighborhoods, communities and our country.”
“We need to make homeownership more accessible, especially in historically marginalized communities,” says Kristy Fercho, head of diverse segments, representation and inclusion at Wells Fargo. “We will continue to expand our programs to reach more customers in underserved communities by leveraging our strong partnerships with UnidosUS and other non-profit organizations to break down the systemic barriers that make homeownership more difficult to attain.”
According to Janneke Ratcliffe, vice president of Urban Institute’s Housing Finance Policy Center, “Latino households are poised to drive most net new homeownership in the United States through at least 2040.” Ratcliffe says their data and analysis will “support the development of evidence-based practices, track progress in meaningful ways and work to bridge knowledge gaps to move toward a more equitable state of homeownership in America.”
The UnidosUS HOME agenda
- Create credit access by modernizing lending rules, supporting ITIN holders and self-employed borrowers, diversifying language access and enhancing credit access
- Increase housing supply – supporting increased density through zoning reforms, leveraging federal tax policy to boost supply and supporting the construction labor force
- Preserve homeownership by making home renovation loans more accessible and supporting policies that ease the inter-generational transfer of wealth
- Help select UnidosUS’s community-based affiliate organizations provide consumer education and housing counseling
- Bolster Latino leadership representation
The HOME initiative’s first focus cities include Chicago, Illinois; Phoenix, Arizona; Stockton, California; Orlando, Florida; and Houston, Texas – communities with large Latino populations and tremendous housing opportunities for prospective Latino homebuyers and builders. The initiative will then continue to expand into other states.
© 2023 Florida Realtors®