April 2023 - Newsletter

April 1, 2023

In the last few years, housing prices in Seattle have risen rapidly, making the dream of ownership appear unattainable. To address this issue, in the summer of 2023, HomeSight is building a 68-unit, residential housing co-operative called ?úləx̌ (U-lex). Pronounced ‘oh-lew’, this project will bring affordable housing to the Othello neighborhood of Southeast Seattle. You may be qualified to secure your own place in U-lex. If you’re interested in becoming a homeowner, you can learn more here.

To find out more about HomeSight’s work and the people who make it possible, keep reading!

Join one of our upcoming virtual workshops!

This is a fantastic opportunity to learn about the application process and get your questions answered. The next workshops will take place Wednesday March 29th and Wednesday April 26 from 6-7pm.

HomeSight on the Ground

One of the newest HomeSight staff members pushing our organization forward is Pearl Nelson. Pearl brings to HomeSight a unique background mixing music, commercial real estate, and grassroots community activism. We are immensely grateful to have Pearl’s enthusiasm, expertise, and, as he would say, sticktoitiveness, particularly as he applies them to U-lex. Expect to see this residential co-operative coming to the Othello Square campus in 2023.

HomeSight on the Radio

Anyone who has read HomeSight’s 2021 Annual Impact Report, or benefitted from her exceptional work, will be very familiar with our Director of Real Estate Development, Uche Okezie. At the end of October, Rainier Avenue Radio graciously hosted Uche to talk about housing affordability, homebuyer education, and HomeSight’s current development projects. This interview provides a great overview of the needs our community has, as well as the programs HomeSight has implemented to address those needs. You can listen to the full interview here.

HomeSight in the News

Part of HomeSight’s efforts to keep Seattle affordable for its residents is spreading the word. We have the incredible fortune of working with both the People’s Economy Lab and the Seattle Times to let our community know that we’re here to help. To learn more about U-lex, you can read Laura Nash’s article here. She provides an excellent overview of the why and how behind the project. The People’s Economy Lab lends great insight to the disparity in homeownership between Black and White households, but for a more in-depth look into this issue, we recommend Alexandra Yoon-Hendricks’ article in the Seattle Times. You can learn about the struggle of Black households to achieve their goal of homeownership, as well as the Sam Smith “Hi Neighbor” Homeownership Fund we established to help address it, here.

When the Washington State Department of Commerce released their report on Homeownership Rates for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color in Washington at the end of 2022, it revealed the issue to be even worse than expected. To quote their report concerning these homeownership rates, “Alarmingly, for some of these groups, these rates are worsening: the Black-white homeownership gap is worse today than it was in the 1960s when racial discrimination in housing was legal.”

Looking for more HomeSight information?

To learn more about:

Partnerships: Moussa Samb | moussa@homesightwa.org

Lending Operations: Scott Kim | scott@homesightwa.org

Finance: Tammie Anders | tammie@homesightwa.org

Community Development: Sarah Valenta | sarah@homesightwa.org

Real Estate Development: Uche Okezie | uche@homesightwa.org

Resource Development: Sekai Senwosret | sekai@homesightwa.org

Employment Opportunities: Joe Thomas | joe@homesightwa.org

Executive Director: Darryl Smith |Executive Assistant: patty@homesightwa.org