Oct21
Randal Wyatt was working as a student advocate for a Portland nonprofit, as well as performing as a hip-hop artist, when police killed George Floyd in Minneapolis. He’s long been outspoken on social justice issues through his work and on social media; soon he was flooded with direct messages from white people, both friends and Continue Reading
Oct15
Panel is on Increasing Homeownership in Underserved Communities This year has been a numbers game. How low are the rates this week? How long will borrowers be in forbearance? Will the next stimulus bill be enough? The pandemic has created a long list record-breaking figures, but behind all the headlines and statistics are real people Continue Reading
Sep01
Similar to a 529 Plan, the American Dream Down Payment Act would help homebuyers save 20% for a down payment in a state-managed savings account Just ahead of what some real estate experts are predicting will be a robust fall homebuying season, Senators Cory Gardner (R-CO) and Doug Jones (D-AL) are aiming to help aspiring Continue Reading
Aug26
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — It’s said that homeownership is a sign of wealth, but what do you do when that wealth is denied to certain people? Studies show nationally, homeownership among African-Americans is a lot lower than White Americans. Experts say the same goes for the city of Memphis. The question is why, and whether anything can Continue Reading
Aug18
Many homeownership trends have remained largely the same since 1960—with a few noteworthy shifts. Photo by Thomas Winz / Getty Images. America is, by and large, a nation of homeowners. Though more than 100 million Americans rent, they’re outnumbered two-to-one by Americans who own their own home, according to data from the U.S. Census. And Continue Reading
Aug04
More space and nearness to family were the main motivations behind Jamie and Alan Rhode’s decision to move from their apartment in Philadelphia’s Fairmount neighborhood to the Plymouth Meeting area. The Rhodes, who both work in finance, planned to rent outside the city for a year or two before buying a house. Then mortgage rates Continue Reading
Aug03
Affordable homes can be hard to buy because lenders don’t make much money on small loans. But programs to encourage homeownership can help buyers build wealth. The Shawnee neighborhood in Louisville, Ky., is a paradox: The houses are affordable, but they can be difficult to buy. The prices are so low that most banks and Continue Reading
Jul20
Over the past couple of decades, American cities replaced their abandoned downtowns with gleaming new residential developments, fancy restaurants, and office buildings with high-paying jobs. On average, the economies of the biggest metro areas in the US doubled in size between 2001 and 2018, according to data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis. But Black Americans were Continue Reading
Jul17
Also discussed racial disparity in forbearance offerings. The House Financial Services Subcommittee on oversight and investigations held a hearing on Thursday examining how servicers provided clarity and information on the CARES Act and forbearance options for borrowers. The discussion, titled “Protecting Homeowners During the Pandemic: Oversight of Mortgage Servicers Implementation of the CARES Act” also investigated disproportionately affected lower Continue Reading
Jun19
Following the U.S. Civil War, regiments of African American men known as buffalo soldiers served on the western frontier, battling Indians and protecting settlers. The buffalo soldiers included two regiments of all-black cavalry, the 9th and 10th cavalries, formed after Congress passed legislation in 1866 that allowed African Americans to enlist in the country’s regular peacetime military. The legislation also Continue Reading
Jun19
In the 20th century, the country issued reparations for Japanese American internment, Native land seizures, massacres and police brutality. Will slavery be next? The papers were handed out one by one to the elderly recipients—most frail, some in wheelchairs. To some, it may have looked like a run-of-the-mill governmental ceremony with the usual federal fanfare. Continue Reading
Jun19
The arrival of the first captives to the Jamestown Colony, in 1619, is often seen as the beginning of slavery in America—but enslaved Africans arrived in North America as early as the 1500s. In late August 1619, the White Lion, an English privateer commanded by John Jope, sailed into Point Comfort and dropped anchor in Continue Reading
Jun19
FICO has been working closely with lenders and partners to provide awareness of reporting options. We at FICO recognize the significant challenges faced by both borrowers and lenders in these extraordinary times. We’ve been working closely with lenders as well as our Credit Reporting Agency (CRA) partners throughout the COVID-19 pandemic to provide awareness of Continue Reading
Jun19
Following Nat Turner’s rebellion of 1831, legislation to limit black people’s access to education intensified. But enslaved people found ways to learn. On August 21, 1831, enslaved Virginian Nat Turner led a bloody revolt, which changed the course of American history. The uprising in Southampton County led to the killing of an estimated 55 white people, resulting Continue Reading
Jun17
Dispiriting. Disgusting. Disorienting. However one chooses to frame the events sparked by George Floyd’s killing at the hands of the Minneapolis police on May 25, the underlying cause is clear: America’s racial divide, a ragged, gaping, self-inflicted wound that has been allowed to fester for centuries, has poisoned the country. At a time when medical Continue Reading
Jun16
The coronavirus outbreak naturally has many real estate agents on edge. For most agents, face-to-face interaction — often with customers from out of town or even out of the country — are a regular part of day-to-day business. It also poses a conundrum when considering one of the industry’s most long-held real estate marketing practices: Continue Reading
Jun16
The housing and mortgage industries can and should respond to George Floyd’s death, the disproportionate impact of the coronavirus and other issues the black community faces, according to the National Association of Real Estate Brokers. “While we are grieved at the passing of yet another black man, George Floyd, at the hands of a few Continue Reading
Jun16
Lenders are concerned about a risk requirement imposed by a recent Federal Housing Administration measure aimed at opening up homeownership opportunities that might otherwise be threatened by coronavirus-related developments. The FHA is temporarily willing to insure mortgages that go into forbearance due to COVID-19 hardships. But in exchange, lenders must agree to be on the hook for Continue Reading
Jun11
Washington — The United States has been here before, staring into the deep chasm that divides white and black Americans. It happened after cities burned in 1967, after Los Angeles erupted with the 1992 acquittal of police officers who beat Rodney King, after the 2014 police killing of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri. After those upheavals Continue Reading
Jun03
New York (CNN Business)Major companies have expressed solidarity with the collective plight of African Americans this week following the horrifying murder by police of George Floyd a week ago and the national chaos that has erupted in its wake. For many black Americans, however, the corporate tweets, executive memos and statements on combating racism ring hollow from companies that too often have baked systemic racism into Continue Reading