On today’s show, host Dana Pellebon speaks with the co-founders of Own It: Building Black Wealth, Tiffany Malone and Sara Alvarado. They discuss why home ownership is so important for Black families to build generational wealth and how their organization is creating a path for economic justice. 

Redlining blocked many Black families from home ownership by creating neighborhoods that were hazardous based on race. But redlining isn’t just something of the past. If you qualify for a first-time homeowner program, you might still face discrimination based on who the money is coming from, say Malone and Alvarado. They wanted to create opportunities for home ownership for Black families who have been deemed a “poor financial risk,” a kind of coded language for people who use down payment assistance. 

Their organization provides “down payment grants” of $19,000, an amount that falls within the gift tax limit. They use private sector funding so that communities can be the wealth that Black and brown families have been denied. So far they have helped 27 families close on homes, educated 400 people on financial literacy, and raised over a million dollars. From challenging the appraisal industry to advice on how to remove or redact racial housing covenants, Malone and Alvarez talk about how to support Black families for generations to come.

Sara Alvarado is a writer, entrepreneur, and unapologetic advocate for racial justice in real estate who believes the key to handling challenges in life and business is to show up authentic, bold, and vulnerable, always ready for fun. Sara is the co-founder & director of Own It: Building Black Wealth, a groundbreaking initiative to increase generational wealth in Black and brown communities through homeownership. She published the memoir Dreaming in Spanish and the Racial Justice Toolkit for Real Estate Professionals. Sara was a real estate broker for 20 years, and her husband, Carlos, now leads their team, Alvarado Group, at Compass.

Tiffany Malone is a real estate consultant, affordable housing advocate, a change agent for racial justice in the real estate industry, and a loud voice for building generational wealth for Black families. Tiffany works with buyer and seller clients in the greater Madison WI area as a licensed Realtor at Alvarado Real Estate Group and is one of the co-creators of OWN IT: Building Black Wealth, an innovative local initiative that is changing the game when it comes to educating and creating access to funds for Black and Brown families to build wealth through real estate and homeownership.

Featured image of Dana Pellebon, Tiffany Malone, and Sara Alvarado courtesy of Sara Gabler/WORT.

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