News - HomeSight

News

September 24, 2024September 24, 2024 HomeSight

National Mortgage Professional Month – Scott Kim

National mortgage professional month

This National Mortgage Professional Month celebrates those who advocate for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. HomeSight, known for its mission-driven mortgage professionals, asked Director of Portfolio Scott Kim how he’s worked toward becoming a leader in the mortgage and housing sector while championing these values.

SCOTT KIM

Meet HomeSight’s Director of Portfolio Scott Kim

Scott Kim, oversees the loan portfolio, homebuyer education, lending origination teams. What drives him? “If I can help a few families like mine, I’ve accomplished my mission, along with HomeSight’s,” he says.

Scott’s family immigrated to the U.S. when he was five years old. They lived in a single room for 18 months while his parents saved for an apartment deposit. After eight years of budgeting and sacrifice, they achieved homeownership.

“I can’t help but wonder how much sooner we could’ve purchased our home if we had access to an organization like HomeSight,” Kim said. Scott Kim’s personal connection to HomeSight fuels his passion and ability to connect with clients.

“HomeSight is a unicorn in the Washington State mortgage industry,” Kim said. “Other organizations support homeownership for low- to moderate-income LMI borrowers, but not at HomeSight’s level. We provide $50,000, $100,000, or even over $200,000 in down payment assistance. I don’t know of another organization in Washington State doing this.”

Scott Kim describes his journey at HomeSight as challenging yet rewarding. One memorable project involved assisting a first-time buyer with a HomeSight development resale, guiding her through the process and handing over the keys.

“The genuine appreciation and emotions I felt from the buyer were one of the most rewarding experiences of my life,” Kim said.

News

September 3, 2024September 3, 2024 HomeSight

Essential Tips to Kickstart Your Homebuying Journey

The process of buying a home can feel overwhelming, but here are some tips to help you get started on your homebuying journey.

Q: I want to buy a home. How do I start?

A: HomeSight’s homebuyer counselors will create a personalized road map for you. Ready, Set, Go for your financial dreams today!

Your first step to buying a home is signing up for free homebuyer counseling. Homebuyer counselors specialize in helping families achieve their dreams of homeownership by giving clients personalized financial planning services.

HomeSight’s HUD-certified counselors Pat Montgomery and Wanda Maldonado listen, advise, and help clients make informed decisions about finances and home purchasing abilities. The best part? It’s all free. There’s no cost to our clients. As a nonprofit Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI), it’s what HomeSight does.

Below, we’ve compiled Pat and Wanda’s general tips and advice for homebuying. It’s a general gameplan that includes their most common FAQs. To make your own, personalized financial plan for the future, make an appointment with Pat or Wanda by creating an account here. Our HUD counselors will help you achieve your goals!

Ready: Take Charge of Your Credit

Minimum credit score: Pat and Wanda frequently tell clients to aim for a minimum credit score of 620, as it can significantly improve your chances of qualifying.

Manage your credit use: Credit use is a key factor in your credit score. Aim to keep your credit use below 30 percent. This means using less than one-third of your total credit limit. For example, if your credit limit is $10,000, try to keep your balance below $3,000.
Clean up your credit report: A clean credit report is crucial. Ensure your credit report is free of collections, charge-offs, or public records like bankruptcy or unpaid taxes. Remove any charge-offs and collections promptly. Also, challenge any errors on your credit report to ensure it accurately reflects your financial situation.

Set: Prepare Financially

Keep at it: Improving your credit is an ongoing process that requires diligence and proactive management. Just as you can’t stay in shape by doing one pushup, you must stay vigilant and attentive to your finances and credit.

Start saving: When preparing to buy a home, it’s recommended you have enough money on hand for the down payment, plus one percent of the home’s sale price, for inspection and appraisal expenses that may come up. Pat and Wanda can help you determine what you can afford and how much you’ll need to save to reach your goals.

GO: Get started!

Plan for graduation: Once you have created your plan and started to reach your essential mile markers, Pat and Wanda will prepare you to graduate into HomeSight’s lending program, which can offer purchase assistance and specialized loans. There’s no cap and gown: just the knowledge and confidence you need to create a secure, financially sound future. To get started with counseling today, by visiting HomeSightWA.org.

News

August 26, 2024September 4, 2024 HomeSight

Terry Miller

Homesight board of directors spotlight

The HomeSight Board of Directors guides the organization’s mission by providing strategic leadership, ensuring financial stability, and supporting key initiatives in affordable housing. Their oversight and expertise help HomeSight address community needs and build strong partnerships.

TERRY MILLER

Terry Miller is used to leading. A top realtor in the region, she’s built her business on a foundation of returning customers and personal referrals. Terry has applied these leadership principles to her volunteer work at HomeSight, serving as president twice during her 18 years of volunteer service. Terry Miller’s leadership has been inspirational not just to the organization, but to her professional colleagues at the National Association of Realtors. Terry was recognized last year with the organization’s Good Neighbor Award in the Seattle area. As Terry Miller transitions out of her role as board president this summer, we asked her to reflect on her tenure, and what her service to HomeSight meant to her.

Four questions for Terry

Q: What do you love about volunteering as a board member at HomeSight?

Everything we do! Our board sets Homesight’s mission and works with the staff to meet the goals and objectives we set to further that mission. We have excellent staff, a great executive director and a committed board. We aim to grow equity in our city—and everywhere. Our counseling, consulting, lending, and building efforts are meeting the constant challenge our expensive city presents. To do this, we work with families to buy and own their homes, provide much-needed reparative lending to support Black/BIPOC developers, build neighborhoods and local businesses, and advocate for housing justice. Through all these efforts, we are helping our neighbors build generational wealth.

Q: When you look back on your term as board president, what makes you most proud?

We can now say, proudly, that our loan programs are available statewide, and we’ve created and developed strong partnerships with government entities as well as private philanthropists. Because of these partnerships, we are able to provide more people with down-payment assistance to help more people reach the financial stability homeownership provides.

We’re also meeting the needs of our neighbors, bolstering local business owners and fostering community development. HomeSight’s Plate of Nations is an incredible example of this. This annual restaurant promotion event has grown every year and has brought millions in economic impact to the community. We have a gift in the diversity of our community, and to celebrate this, we host a number of events to build community connections, inspire community action, and promote inclusion. They’re fun, too. HomeSight rocks. We constantly try to be part of the solution, and it works

Q: What challenges did HomeSight face during your tenure?

Greater Seattle’s exorbitant housing prices, which have generated more need for financial assistance and less housing inventory—think supply and demand—in the price ranges regular, working people can afford. Also, higher interest rates have made it more difficult to borrow—and it costs more to buy less. We’ve been grateful for public and private partnerships that have helped us navigate these rough seas.

Q: How did this experience impact you?

My volunteer experience has been a wonderful way for me to give back and to learn. I’ve learned about other cultures, and the pressures impacting families who are just trying to live and work in a world that’s gotten too expensive. My interactions with the amazing staff members and the many committees and thought groups I’ve joined have opened my eyes to more than I ever thought I could know. Again, we do good work!

Q: What would you like to see in the future, for HomeSight, and the region?

An equitable world, to quote the guru John Lennon, ‘where all people can live as one.’

Homeownership Center, News

May 8, 2024May 8, 2024 HomeSight

Plate of Nations Highlights

Seattle's Most Diverse Restaurant Promotion Week Had Its Biggest Year Ever in 2024!

With more restaurants and more patrons than ever before, 13^th Plate of Nations highlighted the unmatched diversity of the Southeast Seattle food scene.

In its 13^th year of celebrating southeast Seattle’s diverse culinary scene, Plate of Nations drew over 2,000 new customers and increased revenues an average of 12% for the 51 south Seattle restaurants that participated—generating $70,000 for Rainier Valley businesses. This was a 30 percent increase in participation over last year.

Over 16 days this spring, Plate of Nations offered Seattle foodies a culinary world tour, with restaurants that spanned the globe from Laos to Ethiopia. This year, Plate of Nations included Arabic cuisine and two new halal fast food restaurants in its lineup, making its lineup of globe-spanning restaurants the most diverse ever.

“HomeSight’s community development department advocates for small business owners in south Seattle, and we’re always talking about the immeasurable contributions they make to our diverse city. But Plate of Nations allows us to really show, not tell, how diversity can make a community so vibrant,” said HomeSight’s Community Development Director Sarah Valenta. “Sharing food—because a meal really engages all our senses—is, I think, the best way to experience and begin to understand a culture and its traditions.”

Community members agreed. On Plate of Nations’ social media platforms, HomeSight received messages such as:

“Thank you for sharing about the small local businesses in the south end of Seattle. We live 10 minutes away and didn’t know about all these wonderful places. I haven’t been back to the neighborhood since I went to middle school and high school down the street from there!”
“Can I just say that I truly appreciate you all, @plateofnations? So many small and local restaurants get overlooked. I love y’all because it reminds me there are so many restaurants I want to return to or try out!”

“We’re so thrilled to see how this annual celebration has grown over the years and brought success to local business owners,” said Valenta. “We can’t wait to bring it back in 2025!”

Homeownership Center, News

April 11, 2024April 11, 2024 HomeSight

Fair Housing Month

This Fair Housing Month,HomeSight Celebrates
“The Act in Action”

April is Fair Housing Month, and HomeSight programs embody this year’s theme.

Every April, we recognize the anniversary of our country’s Fair Housing Act. Signed into law on April 11, 1968, this federal act prohibited the longstanding practices of discrimination in housing transactions. It protects people from discrimination based on race, color, religion, national origin, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, or familial status.

HomeSight’s work is rooted in the tenets of this landmark legislation and brings the FHA’s ideals to work for Washingtonians. This year’s Fair Housing Month theme – The Act in Action – highlights HomeSight’s important work in the community. Here are a few of the programs that show how HomeSight puts the act in action every day.

U-lex: Affordable Housing Co-op as Anti-Displacement Tool

With beautiful, modern living conditions set next to the light rail station at Martin Luther King Jr. Way and South Holly Park Drive, HomeSight’s U-lex co-op will offer 68 units affordable to families earning 80 percent or less of the area income at the time of purchase.

“For too many Washington residents, even a so-called ‘starter house’ is too big a leap to get into the real estate market,” said HomeSight Executive Director Darryl Smith. “With a co-op like U-lex, people can start building equity at a much lower price point than you’d find in this housing market. U-lex is creating the first few rungs on the ladder, so people can start the climb to the true financial stability homeowning allows.”

U-lex is the final building in HomeSight’s Othello Square complex, which now houses the Odessa Brown Children’s Clinic, a community-based health care provider, Verity Credit Union, Salish Sea Elementary School, and Tiny Tots Development, a provider of early childhood education. Fifty percent of U-lex units are reserved for people who have roots in this community.

“U-lex is an intentional anti-displacement tool,” said Uche Okezie, HomeSight’s Director of Real Estate Development. “Without planned growth through projects such as U-lex, the city risks losing the communities that make Seattle so unique.”

U-lex is spelled “ʔúləx̌” in Lushootseed, the language spoken by the Coast Salish people who originally lived on this land. Pronounced ‘OH-lew,’ ʔúləx̌ means “gather” in the Lushootseed language. To learn more about U-lex, please contact Pearl Nelson or visit the website.

Field Order 15 Fund: Reparative Lending to Help New Black Home Builders — and Homeowners

This year, HomeSight and Black Home Initiative (BHI), launched the Field Order 15 Fund, a reparative lending program for Black home developers that provides upfront grant money, eligibility for low-interest lending, and technical support. The program offers a creative approach to addressing the affordable housing shortage by giving agency to stakeholders that traditionally have not had a seat at the table.

The fund’s name references General William Tecumseh Sherman’s Special Field Order 15, issued at the end of the civil war to re-distribute land to the the newly freed enslaved people, providing each family with “40 acres and a mule.” President Lincoln approved Special Field Order 15, but after his assassination his successor Andrew Johnson rescinded it, returning the land to treasonous former enslavers. Black people never received “40 acres and a mule,” or any restitution for their enslavement. The following ten decades of explicitly racist policies prevented Black people from staking a claim in an economically secure future.

“Field Order 15 Fund aims to fulfill this abandoned equity goal and HomeSight is the perfect home for it,” said Okezie, who manages the project. “As a Community Development Financial Institution, we have homeownership counseling, we do mortgage lending, we offer down payment assistance to income-qualified households, and we also build quality, affordable houses. But we are also a CDC – a Community Development Corporation – and our job there is to promote economic growth in the communities we serve. As a CDFI, a CDC, and a member of the BHI, this project pulls all our expertise, goals and imperatives together in a really unique way.”

Purchase Assistance: Halal Loans, VISTA Loans, and Sam Smith “Hi Neighbor” Fund Offer an Opportunity to Build Generational Wealth

HomeSight’s purchase assistance programs are designed to reach out to communities that were impacted by racism and unfair housing practices. HomeSight can offer first-time homebuyers a VISTA loan, which doesn’t require the borrower to have a social security number. HomeSight’s Halal loan is compliant with Sharia law, for Muslim homebuyers.

HomeSight recently partnered with Windermere Real Estate to create the Sam Smith “Hi Neighbor” Homeownership Fund, a loan product to increase purchasing power and bridge the affordability gap facing Black homebuyers earning between 80-120 percent of Washington state’s median income. The fund allows eligible recipients to borrow up to $20,000 to layer into a mortgage loan to use toward their home’s purchase cost.

This initiative was inspired by legendary Washington state legislator and Seattle City Council President Sam Smith, whose perseverance in passing the state’s version of the Fair Housing Act – the Open Housing Law – in 1967 resulted in a major, hard-won civil rights victory. The fund’s name also gives a nod to Smith’s congenial personality.

“The foundation for generational wealth building in American is rooted in home ownership, and the Fair Housing Act’s passage opened a pathway out of poverty for many Americans,” said Smith. “Fair Housing Month allows us to reflect on how far we’ve come and reminds us how much work remains. The work of HomeSight and its community partners is so important right now because that pathway to prosperity can be long and difficult to navigate. Our job is to light the way.”

News

April 3, 2024April 3, 2024 HomeSight

Plate of Nations is happening now through April 7th in South Seattle.

News

March 20, 2024March 20, 2024 HomeSight

Women’s History Month – Sekai Senwosret

Women’s History Month

This year’s Women’s History Month celebrates women who advocate for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. HomeSight asked the women on its leadership team how they are working toward this goal.

Sekai Senwosret

Today, we asked Director of Resource Development Sekai Senwosret how her department advocates for DEI.

As the Director of Resource Development, my job is to ensure we’re not only talking about diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging – but living it. We partner with funders who show real dedication to these principles. Our fundraising is clear: our mission is rooted in creating equitable opportunities for homeownership. It’s not just about finding partners who agree with us, but those who put their money where their mouth is. This commitment is key to making lasting change for the people we help. I’m proud to be part of an organization that truly makes DEI+B part of its identity in every action we take.

Q: What challenges lie ahead, and how do you plan to tackle them?

A: The main challenge for our small Resource Development team is finding ways to bring in more funds without increasing our costs or team size. I’m looking into using technology to help with this. Fundraising platforms can handle many routine tasks, almost like an extra team member. My goal is to use these tools to keep us efficient but also maintain the personal connection that’s key to fundraising. It’s all about striking a balance between high-tech and high-touch.

Q: What is the most inspiring part of your work?

A: The most inspiring aspect of my job is knowing our daily efforts contribute to a larger cause—helping people achieve something they might not have thought possible, like owning a home. Even when it’s hard to see immediate results, I’m encouraged by the thought that right now, someone could be taking a significant step toward their dream because of our work. That’s the heart of it—making a real, positive difference in someone’s future.

Q: What is your favorite quote?

A: “I always get to where I’m going by walking away from where I have been.” – A.A. Milne, Winnie the Pooh

News

March 8, 2024March 8, 2024 HomeSight

U-Lex will break ground this summer

HomeSight’s Affordable Housing Co-Op, U-lex @ Othello Square, Will Break Ground This Summer

Community-Led Project Will Bring 68 New Affordable Housing Units to Southeast Seattle

After years of planning and development at Othello Square, HomeSight will enter its final phase as it breaks ground this summer on its planned co-operative housing development, U-lex@Othello Square. Set next to the light rail station at Martin Luther King Jr. Way and South Holly Park Drive, U-lex will offer 68 units affordable to families earning 80 percent or less of the area median income at the time of purchase.

HomeSight is now inviting incomc-qualified applicants to apply and reserve a unit at U-lex@Othello Square on a first come, first served basis.

“Seattle needs affordable housing, now more than ever,” said HomeSight Executive Director Darryl Smith. “For too many Washington residents, even a so-called ‘starter house’ is too big a leap to get into the real estate market. With a co-op like U-lex, people can start building equity at a much lower price point than you’d find in this housing market. U-lex is creating the first few rungs on the ladder, so people can start the climb to the true financial stability homeowning allows.”

The first buildings in the Othello complex now house the Odessa Brown Children’s Clinic, a community-based health care provider, Verity Credit Union, Salish Sea Elementary School, and Tiny Tots Development, a provider of early childhood education.

U-lex’s five-story, mixed-use residential development will offer 25 one-bedroom units (650 sqf.), 35 two-bedroom units (860 sqf.), and 8 three-bedroom units (1015 sqf.). U-lex offers underground parking, bike storage, unit storage spaces, and each unit will be equipped with water- and energy- efficient fixtures and appliances. A large, multi-purpose area equipped with a kitchen will be connected to a central, outdoor courtyard, and sun decks and outdoor gardening opportunities will be available on the second and fourth floors.

In addition to the income requirements, applicants must be first-time homebuyers or have not owned a home in the past three years. Preference will be given to southeast Seattle stakeholders: residents, former residents, and people who work or have connections there. Fifty percent of units are reserved exclusively for this community.

To learn more about U-lex, please visit the website or contact Pearl Nelson at pearl@homesightwa.org.

News

March 8, 2024March 8, 2024 HomeSight

Plate of Nations 2024

Ready to Find Your New Favorite Restaurant? Seattle’s Most Diverse Restaurant Promotion Week is Back and Bigger Than Ever in 2024!

13th Plate of Nations highlights the unmatched diversity of the Southeast Seattle food scene.

Between March 22 and April 7, Seattle foodies can embark on a two-week culinary world tour without leaving the city, as HomeSight’s Plate of Nations returns for its 13^th year of celebrating southeast Seattle’s diverse culinary scene.

The event, the most diverse of its kind in Seattle, features 50 independently owned restaurants and highlights the incredible cultural diversity in southeast Seattle, particularly along the Martin Luther King, Jr. corridor. Immigrants from around the world have settled in Rainier Valley and started businesses that provide cultural favorites for ethnic communities looking for a taste of home. Those restaurant owners are excited to welcome other customers to join in their traditions.

Participating restaurants span the globe from Laos to Ethiopia, and will offer special menu items, giveaways and prizes over the 12-day event. Customers can download a “passport” from the Plate of Nations website (or pick one up at any participating restaurant) to record their culinary trip around the world. When a diner reaches eight passport stamps, they win one of four prizes, including a private dining experience at one of our participating restaurants, and a secret recipe with ingredients.

“Southeast Seattle is so unique,” said HomeSight’s Community Development Director Sarah Valenta. “You can walk down the street and hear dozens of languages spoken. With so many cultures represented here, our food scene has choices from all over the world, and it’s all as authentic as you can possibly get.”

Visit www.plateofnations.com to learn more about participating restaurants, which include neighborhood favorites as well as brand-new establishments. Ready to find your new favorite nosh in Seattle? Join us at Plate of Nations!

News

March 5, 2024March 7, 2024 HomeSight

Women’s History Month – Uche Okezie

Women’s History Month

This year’s Women’s History Month celebrates women who advocate for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. HomeSight has five women on its leadership team, all working toward this goal.

Uche Okezie

A first-generation Nigerian immigrant, leads HomeSight’s Real Estate Development team. With a background in urban planning and real estate development and over twenty years of experience with non-profit real estate development, Uche is not just instrumental to the success of our development work, she is – as a woman of color in a field that is almost entirely comprised of white men – giving marginalized communities a ‘seat at the table’ in our region.

Q: How does your department advocate for DEI?

A: With programs that are focused on BIPOC populations, we are using an equity lens in the work that we do especially with community members, groups and organizations.

Q: What challenges lie ahead and how do you plan to tackle them?

A: The work continues in ensuring equitable access to opportunities to build wealth, health, and positive community connections. We tackle them eyes open and head on.

Q: What is the most inspiring part of your work?

A: Helping folks get the outcome they were working so hard to achieve.

Q: Do you have a favorite quote?

A: The quote that springs to mind is: “Stay ready, so you don’t have to get ready.” I’m not sure who said it first but it’s in a song by Suga Free.

National mortgage professional month

SCOTT KIM

Essential Tips to Kickstart Your Homebuying Journey

Ready: Take Charge of Your Credit

Set: Prepare Financially

GO: Get started!

Homesight board of directors spotlight

TERRY MILLER

Four questions for Terry

Seattle's Most Diverse Restaurant Promotion Week Had Its Biggest Year Ever in 2024!

This Fair Housing Month,HomeSight Celebrates“The Act in Action”

Plate of Nations is happening now through April 7th in South Seattle.

Women’s History Month

Sekai Senwosret

HomeSight’s Affordable Housing Co-Op, U-lex @ Othello Square, Will Break Ground This Summer

Community-Led Project Will Bring 68 New Affordable Housing Units to Southeast Seattle

Ready to Find Your New Favorite Restaurant? Seattle’s Most Diverse Restaurant Promotion Week is Back and Bigger Than Ever in 2024!

Women’s History Month

Uche Okezie

This Fair Housing Month,HomeSight Celebrates
“The Act in Action”