From Wall Street to Main Street: Investing in Affordable Housing

by Phil Hanson, President & CEO, Truman Heartland Community Foundation
 
The Truman Heartland Community Foundation Board of Directors, in September of 2024, committed to move forward with an initiative to address Affordable Housing in our Eastern Jackson County community.

The data that compelled the board to make this decision indicated that 22% of households in our region are housing cost-burdened, meaning they spend more than 30% of their household income on housing. And 9% of households are severely cost-burdened, meaning they spend more than 50% of their household income on housing.

The Jackson County Health Department identified Affordable Housing as the third-highest rated overall community health concern in its latest community health survey.

No doubt, there is someone in your family or network of friends who is struggling to obtain affordable housing. We have new teachers, nurses, police officers, and other public servants who are unable to afford housing in the community they serve. We know this is not a local issue but one common to most communities in the United States; however, we believe the solution to this challenge will be local.

One new tool that we have created to address this challenge is our “Community First Loan Fund”. This fund, valued at approximately $900,000, is available for projects that address the affordable housing challenge in our community. It’s available for both nonprofits and private companies. We recently made our first loan from this fund to Truman Heritage Habitat for Humanity. They are rehabbing a house that was donated to them in Raytown, and we are providing a short-term construction loan that will be repaid when they sell the newly renovated home.   

This new tool is what is often referred to as “Mission Related Investing”.  Yes, it’s an investment of the foundation, and it helps us achieve our mission of “Improving Area Communities”. We are utilizing funds that came from our endowed funds, which provide the revenue for our annual competitive community grants process.

This money that was previously invested in our fixed income pool on Wall Street, is now invested here locally, on Main Street. This investment does not decrease the amount available for our annual competitive community grants program; it simply changes the source of revenue.

We look forward to making additional loans for affordable housing projects in our Eastern Jackson County community. If you know of someone working on an affordable housing project that I should talk with, please let me know or have them contact me.

I will share other aspects of our Affordable Housing Initiative in future articles. It’s a big challenge that will require multiple strategies and tools to make an impact, and our “Community First Loan Fund” is just one essential tool. I can be reached via email at [email protected].