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Program Announcement
March 27, 2024
The WA Covenant Homeownership Act Study Is Now Available!
Read the published study at www.wshfc.org/covenant
How did the Covenant Homeownership Act come to pass?
In Spring 2023, thanks to the advocacy and leadership of the Housing Development Consortium, the Black Home Initiative, Rep. Jamila Taylor, Sen. John Lovick, and Rep. Frank Chopp, the Washington State Legislature passed the Covenant Homeownership Act with bipartisan support. This landmark legislation makes us the first state to face and address the role of government institutions in housing-related discrimination and racism.Dear Lending Partners,
What is the Covenant Homeownership Study?
The study is the first, crucial step in the development of Covenant Homeownership Act assistance programs. The study is required by the Covenant Homeownership Act and documents historic housing discrimination in Washington State, the role of government institutions in the discrimination, the impacts on people today, and what specific assistance would be likely to remedy these impacts.
The study has been led by National Fair Housing Alliance (NFHA), partnering with research firm Abt Associates and Washington’s own Northwest Fair Housing Alliance (NWFHA) and Fair Housing Center of Washington (FHCW).
Key Study Findings and Recommendations:
State institutions played both active and passive roles in perpetuating housing discrimination against a range of marginalized groups
Impacts of that discrimination are still felt today in the lower homeownership rates and net worth among many of those groups
Without specifically aiming to help these groups that were excluded for so long, a program would be ineffective in remedying the disparities
Next Steps:
Development of the Covenant Homeownership Program to Help Homebuyers
The Study findings and recommendations will help shape the eligibility guidelines for the Covenant Homeownership Program to be developed by the Washington State Housing and Finance Commission which will begin serving homebuyers in July 2024.
The Covenant Homeownership Act also mandates that the eligibility requirements must include:
Household income at or below 100% of the Area Median Income (AMI).
First-time homebuyer.
Washington state resident who was a resident before the enactment of the Federal Fair Housing Act and was, or would have been, excluded from homeownership in Washington state by a racially restrictive covenant on or before April 1968; or a descendant of the resident outlined above.
Learn More
Join us on for a Study Overview
This presentation will provide an overview and key findings from the study.
Tuesday, April 2, 2024
10:00 a.m. to 11:15 a.m. PT
Click here to Register to Attend the Virtual Presentation
If you have questions about this event, contact nfhaevents@nationalfairhousing.org
For more information about the Study, visit:
https://www.wshfc.org/covenant
https://bit.ly/CovenantHome