CMHC Joins Partners to Convene BIPOC Homeownership Summit
Plenary speakers Donald King, Nehemiah Initiative; Darryl Smith, HomeSight, former Seattle Deputy Mayor; and Nicole Bascomb-Green, U.S. Bank, National Association of Real Estate Brokers (NAREB)—Western Washington Realtist/Seattle Chapter.
Last Monday, March 29, the Coalition for More Housing Choices convened a group of more than 100 regional stakeholders for an important conversation around increasing homeownership opportunities for communities of color. The Coalition partnered with the Housing Development Consortium, National Association of Real Estate Brokers (NAREB)—Western Washington Realtist/Seattle Chapter, and nearly a dozen other organizations to host the virtual event:
Disparities in access to homeownership, as well as displacement from affordable homes, creates a significant barrier to wealth creation for communities of color, especially among Black households. At Monday’s summit, stakeholders from throughout the region discussed strategies that could enable the Puget Sound region (King, Pierce, Snohomish, and Kitsap counties) to achieve a proposed challenge statement: 60,000 more successful Black homeowners by 2041. This would effectively double the current Black homeownership rate in the Puget Sound region and close the Black-white homeownership gap.
The opening plenary session featured Donald I. King, Nehemiah Initiative Seattle; Darryl Smith, HomeSight, former Seattle Deputy Mayor; and Nicole Bascomb-Green, U.S. Bank, NAREB. The plenary was moderated by Michelle Merriweather, CEO of Urban League of Metropolitan Seattle. Speakers discussed the history behind today’s homeownership disparity and reiterated why it is so important to address this gap.
The opening session at Monday’s Homeownership Summit included insights from moderator Michelle Merriweather (upper left), and panelists Donald I. King, Darryl Smith, and Nicole Bascomb-Green.
Facilitated breakout sessions focused on six areas: buyer identification and preparation; construction financing; land, scaled production, and alternative methods; mortgage lending; sustaining existing owners; and policy reform.
Attendee Donna Smith, Smith NMTC Associates LLC, said of the summit, “We loved seeing so many bright people in one space collaborating to help eradicate the racial wealth gap through increasing opportunities for homeownership for BIPOC homebuyers, especially Black homebuyers.”
Organizers hope the strategies identified at the March 29 summit can form the basis of a comprehensive strategy for a joint public, private, and nonprofit initiative to increase Black homeownership in the region. Thank you to all who participated. As this effort moves forward, we will keep you updated on additional opportunities to collaborate and engage in this work.