Shenita Muse
Shenita Muse leads the Hope Center Foundation, which is leading an effort to fix Chicago’s gridlocked housing market in some of the city’s most needy areas. “Reclaiming Communities” is an initiative to build or rehab 2,000 homes on the city’s South Side and West Side. The homes will then be sold to residents who have consistently paid their rent on time, commit to live in them for at least five years and meet other requirements.
“People are facing pricing challenges on two fronts. First, rising interest rates are leading homeowners to increase rental prices to unsustainable levels. And secondly, the cost of new home construction has escalated, making it harder for developers to build affordable housing.”
“Developers want to make money – not lose money, not break even. They’re not going to build in a disinvested community like Roseland, like Austin, like Lawndale, because nobody can afford a home at the price it costs them to build.”
“The United Power member institutions have raised $25 million from public and private sources to write down the cost of construction and offer down payment assistance. Our goal is that their mortgage payment will be the same as what they’re paying in rent. And you’re talking about a three-bedroom, two-bath home with all appliances, a fenced-in yard and a two-car garage.”
“We currently have 10 homes built, with four buyers secured and a planned move-in date set for October 2024.”
“There is a lot of red tape in the city and we struggled to navigate the administrative process. However, with the launch of the Cut the Tape initiative by Mayor Brandon Johnson and his team, we’ve seen clear improvements and streamlining in the process.”
“Our mission and vision at the Hope Foundation focuses on moving people out of poverty and into sustainable career pathways, ultimately leading to generational wealth. Entrepreneurship and homeownership are the two essential avenues to achieve this, and we offer programs that support both.”
Shenita Muse
Executive director, Hope Center Foundation
Chicago, Illinois
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