Houston, TX   — The National Association of Real Estate Brokers, Inc. (NAREB) recently released its 2012 Post-Recession Housing Recovery Policy Paper that focuses on the high rate of foreclosures, neighborhood blight and disparities in disaster recovery that are currently impacting and will continue to impact minority communities across the United States.

During a State of Housing in Black America (SHIBA) Solutions Forum held on the campus of Texas Southern University, Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (TX-18th District) lauded the quality, content, and scope of the report and praised NAREB for its ongoing leadership in a national movement to ensure affordable housing for all people of color.

“NAREB’s foresight in identifying the problems, doing the necessary research, developing realistic solutions with industry experts across the country, and keeping members of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) apprised of their progress, is both timely and commendable” said Rep. Lee. “I want to congratulate you on this effort.”

Kevin Dancy, district director for Rep. Al Green (TX-9th District), speaking on behalf of Rep. Green, stated that “the Congressman, who sits on Financial Services, the premiere committee that deals with housing issues, is concerned about the housing crisis in Black America and is committed to doing whatever he can in his capacity, and on that committee, to help solve the issues.”

Representative Lee also presented the Houston Black Real Estate Association (HBREA), Houston’s local chapter of NAREB, with a U.S. House of Representatives Certificate of Congressional Recognition for its commitment and dedication to promoting equality in housing and enhancing the quality of life in urban neighborhoods.

PUBLIC INTEREST

The SHIBA Solutions Forum was open to the general public, TSU students and faculty, and real estate industry professionals from Houston and surrounding areas.

“There are a lot of things that have occurred in the African-American community and other communities of color relating to the housing crisis that many people are not aware of,” said NAREB President, Julius Cartwright.

“That’s why we were anxious to share all of our research and have a productive dialogue with the public, so that people will understand the ongoing impact in African-American communities and in other ethnic minority communities, across the nation.

Thus, the Houston SHIBA Solutions Forum highlighted the Report of our Findings. Our proposed ‘solutions’ focused on preservation of homeownership, as well as the creation of sustainable homeownership for individuals and families trying to achieve that dream. Not only has an incredible amount of wealth been lost as a result of the mortgage crisis, but it is not being rebuilt due to lack of access.”

‘SOLUTIONS’

The findings and solutions in the report were developed as a result of a series of SHIBA issues forums held in other major U.S. cities, which included presentations by industry experts, and local and national political and community leaders such as: Maurice Jourdain-Earl (Compliance Tech); Dr. LaVaughn Henry (Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland-Cincinnati Branch); Keith Corbett (Center for Responsible Lending); Dr. Benjamin Chavis, (Hip-Hop Summit Action Network); Rev. Dr. Otis Moss Jr. (Retired Pastor of the Olivet Institutional Baptist Church of Cleveland, Ohio); Dr. Lezli Baskerville, Esq., (National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education); Jackie Hoyer (Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas-Houston Branch); Congressman Elijah E. Cummings (MD-11th District); Congressional Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton, (DC); and United States Senator Sherrod Brown (OH).

According to Housing Predictor (2012), 10 million homeowners will experience foreclosure through 2012. And CoreLogic (2012) reports that there are 1.4 million homes currently in the foreclosure inventory. A study by the Mortgage Bankers Association indicates that about 3.25 million borrowers are delinquent on their loans and in danger of losing their homes. For mortgages made between 2004 and 2008, approximately one quarter of all Latino and African-American borrowers lost their homes to foreclosure. 

“Our 2012 Post-Recession Housing Recovery Policy Paper represents doable and realistic solutions, and we stand ready to assist members of the CBC as they begin to draft legislation to provide the essential federal resources and regulations necessary to implement key solutions outlined in the Report,” said Cartwright.