Rocket Community Fund Invests in “Stable, Healthy Housing” for Underserved Communities

Detroit resident Romell Johnson had two goals: to construct his savings and begin a brand new profession. Rocket Community Fund, a philanthropic partner of Rocket Companies, helped achieve this with the Rocket Wealth Accelerator program.

The program, launched in late 2022, is a $2 million investment from Local Initiatives Support Corp. (LISC), which promotes financial stability for underserved residents of Detroit, Cleveland, Milwaukee and Atlanta. Designated LISC Financial Opportunity Centers help clients improve emergency fund management, construct credit and construct generational wealth.

Thanks to this system, Johnson was able to avoid wasting $500, buy a brand new automotive and budget for the longer term.

“I feel unstoppable. I’m more confident in my financial stability if an emergency happens,” Johnson said.

“It made me realize that new goals are possible. Why not work toward buying a house?”

Michael T. Pugh, president and CEO of LISC, said greater than 2,400 people have benefited from financial counseling that focused on topics including constructing emergency savings and saving for a house.

Pugh added, “The Rocket Wealth Accelerator matched savings program has already unlocked $280,000 for community members. And Rocket’s commitment to financial inclusion and wellness aligns perfectly with LISC’s mission and dedication to closing wealth and opportunity gaps—we are deeply grateful for this catalytic partnership.”

The Accelerator is considered one of several programs supported by the Fund that aim to assist underserved communities overcome systemic challenges in accumulating and transferring wealth.

MISSION INCLUDES A VOW TO SIMPLIFY UNFAIR SYSTEMS

The Fund’s goal is to simplify complex and inequitable systems to make sure that every American has access to stable, healthy housing. It focuses on 4 national investment pillars: ending homelessness, stopping displacement, constructing wealth through homeownership, and bridging the digital divide. A fifth investment pillar, shared with the Gilbert Family Foundation, focuses on constructing opportunity in Detroit. Since 2010, Rocket Community Fund has committed greater than $230 million to community organizations and programs.

The foundation of the Fund’s work is Neighbor to Neighbor, a door-to-door outreach campaign that connects residents with resources and gathers information to tell future investments. The program began in Detroit in 2017 to scale back tax foreclosures. It has since expanded to Cleveland, Milwaukee and Atlanta.

“The access to housing resources and information, coupled with the connectivity that happens through Neighbor to Neighbor, is the secret sauce of the program,” said Rob Lockett, national housing stability team leader at Rocket Community Fund.

“Through this process, community members become stronger and better able to advocate for themselves.”

As Lockett explains, through Neighbor to Neighbor, “residents are encouraged to get out and talk to each other about housing issues that affect their community and that are most felt at the neighborhood level.”

SOLVING A FULL SPECTRUM OF HOUSING PROBLEMS

In 2018, Rocket Community Fund became a lead sponsor of Built for Zero, a nationwide movement of greater than 100 communities focused on ending homelessness. Since 2015, Built for Zero communities have housed greater than 176,000 people.

“Our support for Built for Zero is intended to help communities across the country develop better systems to respond to the challenge of homelessness,” said Rocket Community Fund Executive Director Laura Grannemann.

“The data shows that providing housing with supportive services is not only more effective in reducing homelessness, but also significantly reduces spending on emergency services such as hospitalizations, incarceration and shelters.”

She added: “By identifying wider trends we can also act early on in the problem to prevent more people from becoming homeless.”

An example of this upstream approach is the recent investment by Rocket Community Fund in Atlanta. In March 2024, the organization announced $250,000 in recent funding to guard senior and elderly homeowners in Atlanta from displacement by paying off previous property balances. This follows a $500,000 investment in 2022 in the Atlanta BeltLine Partnership’s Legacy Resident Retention Program (LRRP), which stabilizes property tax rates for income-qualifying residents through 2030.

Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens praised efforts to stop displacement of everlasting residents.

“Our vision of ‘one city, one bright future’ can only be achieved through partnerships that prioritize our most critical needs, like stable and safe housing. I am grateful to Rocket Community Fund for their commitment to promoting equity and economic inclusion for Atlantans.”

Rocket Community Fund understands the vital role renters play in a healthy housing market. In Atlanta, the organization invested $300,000 in the Atlanta Volunteer Lawyers Foundation to strengthen its eviction defense services. It also invested $1.25 million to launch the Cleveland Eviction Defense Fund.

I feel unstoppable. I feel like my destiny is written by me. I’m more confident in my financial stability because if an emergency happens, I now have flexibility.”

While eviction protections for tenants prevent instability, Rocket Community Fund works to assist tenants change into homeowners through programs like Make It Home.

The program, which began in Detroit, allows eligible tenants occupying foreclosed homes to change into homeowners slightly than face eviction. The program uses the town’s “right of refusal” to purchase properties before the foreclosure auction for the worth of the delinquent taxes. The properties are then purchased by a nonprofit partner with financial support from the Rocket Community Fund and sold to the tenant under a land contract for the fee of the delinquent taxes. A complete of 1,500 families have change into homeowners through this system.

BUILDING GENERATIONAL WEALTH

The Rocket Community Fund goals to make sure that more Americans can enjoy the advantages of homeownership and pass on wealth to future generations, especially Black Americans who’ve faced systemic barriers to homeownership.

Since 2010, the wealth gap between black and white families has grown. As the fee of homeownership continues to rise across the country, significant effort and focus will probably be needed to assist reverse this trend.

While the dimensions of the challenge could seem overwhelming, the Rocket Community Fund team uses its core philosophies, ISM, to discover solutions.

“One of our ISMs is ‘You will see it when you believe it,’” Grannemann says. “That means we are driven by positivity and the belief that we can overcome big challenges. Instead of sitting on the sidelines and waiting for change, we work with our social partners to make it happen.”