Wealth Opportunities Restored Through Homeownership (WORTH) grant will help approximately 5,000 homebuyers of color

Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney, Henrico County Manager John Vithoulkas, local and State elected officials joined LISC Virginia and the RVA WORTH Homeownership Collaborative to announce the launch of a new initiative to expand homeownership opportunities for Black, Hispanic, and other underserved individuals and families. Funded with a $7.5 million grant from the Wells Fargo Foundation, the initiative kicked off with a panel discussion featuring prominent leaders from the collaborative discussing potential solutions to racial homeownership gaps across the region.

The donation to Local Initiatives Support Corporation, or LISC, Virginia comes from Wells Fargo’s Wealth Opportunity Restored Through Homeownership, or WORTH, initiative, a $60 million national effort to address systemic barriers to homeownership for people of color. Richmond is one of eight markets across the U.S. to receive a WORTH grant, which aims to help create 5,000 new homeowners of color in Virginia by the end of 2025.

“As a company, we’re committed to creating opportunities for more people of color to buy their own homes,” said Otis Rolley, president of the Wells Fargo Foundation and head of Philanthropy and Community Impact. “We know that without very deliberate interventions from the public and private sector, there is risk that the racial homeownership gap will continue to grow. Today’s donation in Richmond is about identifying specific housing challenges in the region and accelerating actions that will build homeownership, which in turn, grows generational wealth.”

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According to the RVA Collaborative, the plan is to implement a variety of strategies to expand housing inventory and support homebuyers of color, including:

• Comprehensive outreach and education campaigns
• Increasing access to flexible, affordable products and resources for potential homebuyers
• Innovations that reduce construction costs and enhance capacity to deliver more housing stock
• Continuing policy efforts to address systemic barriers impacting homeownership

“The WORTH Plan represents a call to action for our region to commit to a common value of equitable economic mobility and create a more level playing field for people of color who aspire to achieving wealth building through homeownership.” said Jane Ferrara, Executive Director of LISC Virginia.

Source: Wells Fargo