Real Estate Investing for Personal Wealth AND Housing Equity

[Maya Grevatt]

I am interested in thinking about how people seeking financial freedom through real estate investment might be able to align their efforts and decisions with their values. Is anyone thinking or talking about strategies or models of REI that both build wealth AND have a positive social impact/outcome on racial and housing equity and access...?

I recently closed on a triplex in NH and my career is focused on racial and economic equity. I'm curious if there are any companies or groups challenging the presiding assumption that building individual wealth through real estate inherently reinforces and exacerbates housing equity/justice issues... maybe there are strategies that allow people to align REI teams and rental approach with social impact objectives? Are any BP members interested in or aware of groups talking about this concept?

I am in initial conversations with a small, regional group exploring this idea; if you have thoughts or are interested in being involved, please let me know!

[Sara Frank]

Quote from @Maya Grevatt:

I am interested in thinking about how people seeking financial freedom through real estate investment might be able to align their efforts and decisions with their values. Is anyone thinking or talking about strategies or models of REI that both build wealth AND have a positive social impact/outcome on racial and housing equity and access...?

I recently closed on a triplex in NH and my career is focused on racial and economic equity. I'm curious if there are any companies or groups challenging the presiding assumption that building individual wealth through real estate inherently reinforces and exacerbates housing equity/justice issues... maybe there are strategies that allow people to align REI teams and rental approach with social impact objectives? Are any BP members interested in or aware of groups talking about this concept?

I am in initial conversations with a small, regional group exploring this idea; if you have thoughts or are interested in being involved, please let me know!

As an agent in Baltimore, I've worked with a few investors looking to sell off their investment properties. In this scenario my dream is actually not to sell the property to another investor, but help the tenants (usually voucher/section 8) buy the property themselves via TOPA and/or using city home buyer programs available to low income households. In Baltimore there are numerous first time home buyer incentives worth tens of thousands for this type of buyer, but there is little to no education about them that is readily accessible, and almost no staffing to support the programs. It would take months and a few too many headaches to get a deal like that done, so usually they just get sold off to another investor and the cycle of poverty continues.

The government doesn't seem to understand that it's not enough for these programs to exist, they need to be staffed, funded and be advertised more than just a convoluted page on the city website. Like tax law, it seems these new and shiny programs are getting increasingly difficult for the end consumer to digest, and that's no coincidence. It's meant to confuse and dissuade, to intimidate. These housing issues are pushed to the back burner because Baltimore is suffering from what, on the surface, appears to be far greater challenges such as gun violence and crumbling schools. But if you take enough steps back, you'll see that every single issue the city faces today is in direct lineage with the racist housing policies that took effect 100+ years ago. All this to say -- the only way to bring change is to continue to bring attention to the issue and support the work being done by fair housing groups and push for clearer and more accessible housing programs. As investors, our greatest responsibility is to landlord ethically and to identify and address our own biases, especially when it's uncomfortable.