By Sonya J. Seeder, Esq., BSA LifeStructures
Redlining is the process of segregating neighborhoods either through explicit racial covenants or the refusal by financial institutions to grant loans, mortgages or insurance to minority borrowers or investing in predominantly minority neighborhoods, per WFYI News. This practice has created generational obstacles to owning property and investing in many minority neighborhoods. The effects can still be seen in Indianapolis today. Earlier this year, a report from the Fair Housing Center of Central Indiana found that Black homeownership in Marion County has declined by 20% over the past decade. One reason being that Black applicants are denied home loans at a higher rate than white applicants, regardless of credit profile.
To counter the discriminatory impacts of redlining, the Federal Government passed the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) in 1977. The CRA rates banks on investments they make into middle and low-income neighborhoods. Forty-five years later, the CRA may be subject to newly proposed reforms aimed to expand assessment areas and provide more regulatory consistency. Additionally, the reforms seek to expand access to credit and banking services in low and moderate income communities while adapting to online and mobile banking. Beyond benefiting underserved communities, updates to the CRA provide community banks opportunities to reinvest their capital gains through the Opportunity Zone program.
To learn more about the historical and current impacts of housing discrimination and legal updates, join the Indy Bar Real Estate & Land Use Section and the Marion County Bar Association for Equal Housing for Everyone: A Discussion on Housing Discrimintion on September 14, 2022 from 11:00AM-1:00PM at IndyBar HQ. Amy Nelson, Executive Director of Fair Housing Center of Central Indiana and Doneisha Posey, Vice President & General Counsel at Black Onyx Management Inc. will share their unique perspective of advocating for fair housing and anti-discrimination law. This program qualifies for 2.00 Ethics Credits. You can register here: https://www.indybar.org/?pg=Events&eid=253722&evAction=regV2.
If you would like to submit content or write an article for the Real Estate & Land Use Section, please email Deneen Fitzgerald at dfitzgerald@indybar.org.
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