The Hill, October 23, 2018: DC groups announce push to invest in affordable housing, small business
A coalition of community organizations announced Tuesday plans for a major effort to boost affordable housing, small business growth and job skills in Washington, D.C.
The groups are partnering with Wells Fargo and the National Community Reinvestment Coalition (NCRC). Wells Fargo has pledged $1.6 billion in lending and philanthropic programs for Washington neighborhoods, primarily in the city’s economically distressed Wards 7 and 8.
NCRC president and founder John Taylor said the program, called Where We Live, is a “seminal moment for D.C.” He noted that people growing up in public housing and blighted neighborhoods are often shut out from the formal economy.
“You’re not even starting on home plate, you’re starting in the minor leagues,” he said.
Taylor spoke alongside other community leaders and bank executives at a breakfast roundtable Tuesday, convened by The Hill and sponsored by Wells Fargo, about how to best use the investments to address major issues facing underserved communities.
In a city with soaring rental and homeownership costs, low wages are often the biggest obstacle for people to achieve financial independence.
While homeownership is generally perceived as the most common way for American families to build wealth, attendees on Tuesday agreed that it’s not a one-size-fits-all solution.
Many residents live month-to-month and are one emergency expenditure away from financial crisis, attendees noted.
Joseph Leitmann-Santa Cruz, associate director of Capital Area Asset Builders, said 47 percent of families in Washington, or about 100,000 families, fall into the category of being financially unstable.
Leitmann-Santa Cruz argued that for Washington’s undocumented residents, who account for 5 percent of the population, the ability to open bank accounts with a Taxpayer Identification Number rather than a Social Security Number — which is legal — can make all the difference.
Gustavo Velasquez, director of the Washington-Area Research Initiative at the Urban Institute, said the average net worth of a white family in 2014 in Washington was $285,000, while the average net worth of a black family was $3,000.
