How Homeownership Benefits Your Community
Owning your own home has a ton of personal perks: Privacy, agency, stability… and a sure path to long-term wealth. Yes, please!
But here’s the thing: The benefits of buying a home aren’t limited to you and your bank account. Given our country’s history of housing discrimination, homeownership is also a form of activism.
Here’s a little history lesson.
The politics of who can and can’t own property have driven our cultural power dynamics since slavery was legal. But in the 1930s, mortgage lenders took housing discrimination to a new level with a practice that would come to be known as redlining.
In 1933, the U.S. government established the Home Owners’ Loan Corporation (HOLC) as part of FDR’s response to the Great Depression, the New Deal. The stated intent of the program was to support financially struggling homeowners through mortgage refinancing.
To determine which homeowners could receive funding, HOLC drew up maps indicating desirable neighborhoods for investment. The best areas of town were outlined in green, marginal neighborhoods in blue or yellow, and the riskiest locations in red.
“Risky” was defined not by creditworthiness, but by race. More specifically, communities with primarily Black and immigrant residents were marked as ineligible for investment. No mortgages. No home improvement loans. Also: No student loans. No insurance. No credit cards.
Meanwhile, real estate professionals and white homeowners also used racially restrictive covenants to prevent people of color from owning homes in “more desirable” neighborhoods. If you purchased property in a green neighborhood, you agreed to never sell your home to a family of color. And these weren’t just verbal, wink-wink promises; they were written right into the real estate contracts.
There’s no more obvious evidence of systemic racism.
But that’s all in the past, right? Not so fast.
The Fair Housing Act (1968) officially banned discrimination based on race and other factors, but you can still see the effects of redlining today. As properties fell into disrepair, businesses moved out—including grocery stores. As a result, current residents of formerly redlined neighborhoods are more likely to be poor and sick.
Plus, because banks are allowed to be choosy about certain factors, like property condition and neighborhood amenities, communities that suffered under redlining and still ineligible for investment.
Let’s be honest: Outlawing housing discrimination hasn’t put an end to it. Some banks continue to deny mortgages based on race (yes, still), while others engage in reverse redlining—predatory lending to the same neighborhoods once marked off-limits. We’re also seeing exclusionary zoning, which keeps affordable housing out of more affluent neighborhoods.
Complicated problems require complicated solutions.
Ending housing discrimination won’t be easy or fast. But here’s what we know for sure: You can make a real and lasting difference by becoming a homeowner.
Here’s how:
Homeownership builds a sense of community ownership.
You’re taking a piece of a neighborhood and saying, “This is mine. I claim it and take responsibility for it.” That means you’ll be more likely to care about the amenities and businesses in your surrounding neighborhood.
Community ownership also means an increase in volunteering, participating in local events, and building relationships with your neighbors.
Homeownership creates community wealth.
Homeowners tend to maintain their properties better than absent investors, so the more homeowners in a community the better the property values. The better the property values, the more taxes go to your roads, libraries, parks, schools, and social services.
Homeownership leads to direct activism.
Staking a claim in your community by owning a home means you’ll take ownership in other ways. You’ll be more likely to vote in local elections and get involved in conversations about taxation and government funding opportunities across your neighborhood.
You can also be a part of ending housing discrimination in your community, increasing opportunities for everyone else in your area.
We’re committed to helping everyone acquire and build wealth through homeownership.
Are you ready to make a difference—for yourself and in your community? Let’s chat.
