Investing in Black and African American Homeownership Black homeowners hold the keys to their new home. (Photo: Adobe)
in historic inequities that often persist today. Homeownership is a central and primary tool for building wealth and passing it on to the next generation, and for Black and African Americans, that wealth-building opportunity has been substantially more difficult to obtain. Colorado Housing and Finance Authority (CHFA) is guided by a vision that everyone in Colorado will have the opportunity for housing stability and economic prosperity. CHFA is committed to reducing the homeownership gap because as the state housing and finance authority, it is not just our mission, but our responsibility to ensure that homeownership access is equitable for everyone in Colorado. What is CHFA? Colorado Housing and Finance Authority (CHFA) was created by the Colorado General Assembly
By GREG BROWN
In a statewide poll conducted earlier this year by The Colorado Health Foundation, 90% of Black and African American Coloradans said that the cost of housing was an “extremely serious” or “very serious” problem. Other issues identified as “extremely” or “very” serious included homelessness (83%), the rising cost of living (81%), and racial bias and discrimination (72%). At the same time, data from the National Association of REALTORS® Snapshot of Race and Home Buying in America shows only 42% of Black Coloradans own their own home, compared with 70% of White Coloradans. This homeownership gap is the result of significant and outsized economic barriers rooted
16 The Acumen
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