FAQs

Affordable housing is housing that a household can pay for, while still having money left over for other necessities like food, transportation, and health care. That means that what’s considered “affordable” depends on a household’s income.  Homeownership shouldn’t require an individual or family to give up one necessity for another.  A growing share of the population cannot afford housing costs.  GROWTH is here to meet the challenge by creating pathways to homeownership. For more information on affordable housing, check our blog post here.

Enacted in 1977, the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) is a United States federal law designed to encourage financial institutions to help meet the credit needs of borrowers in ALL segments of their communities, including low- and moderate-income neighborhoods.

Three federal banking agencies are responsible for managing the CRA.  These institutions include:

• Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC)
• Federal Reserve Board (FRB)
• Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC)

Each of these agencies has a dedicated CRA site that provides information about the banks they oversee (if they have CRA obligations) and those banks’ CRA ratings and Performance Evaluations. For more information on CRA, check out our blog here.  For more information visit NCRC’s Treasure CRA page here.

Redlining is a term for the way lenders classified neighborhoods with people more likely to default on their mortgage. Lenders would use red ink on paper maps to outline parts of cities that were considered high risk and a poor investment primarily based on demographics.  Check out our blog post here for more information on this discriminatory practice.

Homeownership remains a cornerstone of the American Dream.  Homeownership provides individuals and families with a sense of emotional and financial stability.  At nearly all income levels, investing in a home has enabled individuals and families to build equity and generate wealth, a key component of upward mobility.

Homeownership also plays a vital role in helping to build strong, stable communities. Research shows that homeowners volunteer more often, enjoy better health and that neighborhoods with more owners boast lower crime rates.  Additionally, homeownership boosts the overall economy. Homeowners also tend to buy more goods and use more services in their communities and the housing market provides jobs from construction to manufacturing to insurance.

However, for too many Americans—particularly people of color—this dream has often been just out of reach.  That’s why, at GROWTH, we encourage and assist low- and moderate-income and minority homebuyers with affordable homeownership and affordable housing options.  In fact, it’s so important, we made affordable homeownership our mission.

A low-to moderate-income person or family typically makes less than 80% of area median income (AMI).  Determining whether you’re a low- or moderate-income person starts with your annual income Once you know how much you’re earning in a year, you can then compare yourself to the average income earned for people living near you.  This will help determine which homeownership options are best for you.  For more information on AMI and CRA, click HERE.

We currently build and renovate homes in fifteen markets!  You can search our entire inventory of properties right here on our website. Begin your search HERE.

For homeownership opportunities, please call 1-888-464-8188 or click HERE.

Construction timeframes vary depending on the municipality and size of the renovation.  Our goal is to create affordable housing and homeownership options that are safe, quality, and appealing to our clients. Typical construction times range from 3-12 months.  Please note that COVID-19 has extended time frames in some states.

Yes, there are homes that rent/lease depending on availability. Please call 1-888-464-8188 to learn more.

If you’re interested in becoming a Joint Venture Partner or General Contractor GC with GROWTH, please call. Our number is 1-888-464-8188.

GROWTH has a GC sign up package that includes standard procedures and the required forms needed to work. Please provide an email request or call 1-888-464-8188.