In a recent report, the National Association of Realtors found that Wisconsin has the third lowest rate of homeownership among African Americans; as of 2018, only 23% of African Americans in Wisconsin owned homes, a staggering difference from the 71% of white citizens. The Urban League of Greater Wisconsin hopes to bridge this gap with their new $5 million initiative to help Black Madisonites purchase homes.
CEO Ruben Anthony said that Urban League aims to purchase and renovate 15 to 17 homes to sell to moderate-to-low-income families struggling to buy a home in Madison. No down payment will be required to purchase these homes.
According to Anthony, some of the houses should be ready to buy within the next 30 to 60 days. Operation Fresh Start, a local nonprofit that helps 16 to 24-year-olds complete their education and begin working in fields like construction, will take part in the renovation process.
Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority is contributing $3.5 million to the initiative, along with the city of Madison, which is providing $200,000. A portion of the funding will also come from federal tax credits.
'Bridging the homeownership gap among people of color is critically important today,' Joaquin Altoro, WHEDA's executive director, said.
While Wisconsins' overall rate of black homeownership is 23%, Dane County's stands at an even lower 12%.
Anthony cited gentrification as one of the reasons it's becoming more difficult for 'regular people' to afford a home in Madison. As the South Side especially becomes more developed, it becomes less affordable for low-income families. But income isn't the only barrier between Madison's black families and homeownership. Families of color face still disproportionately high rates of housing stress regardless of whether or not their income is different from that of white families, according to the Dane County Housing Initiative.
Ald. Sheri Carter was the first African American woman elected City Council president. She told the Wisconsin State Journal that she has memories of moving to Madison with her family nearly sixty years ago. Carter remembers that her mother said, 'We can't do that,' to certain homes.
Carter has hope that this initiative will change things so that today's black Madison families don't have to experience the same stress. 'We have leveled the playing field,' she said. 'Never will we hear, 'Can't do this.'
Mayor Rhodes-Conway noted that people of color also face more barriers when it comes to mortgages, as they are denied financing more often than white families are. Rhodes-Conway has committed to using more funding for efforts like this one in next year's capital budget.
'That can't stand,' Rhodes-Conway told WSJ when speaking about the housing disparity. 'We can't do that.' This time, the phrase was a stand against inequality, rather than a result of it.