HomeSight Leader Darryl Smith Appointed to Covenant Homeownership Program Oversight Committee

HomeSight’s Executive Director Darryl Smith was selected this month by Governor Inslee to serve on the Covenant Homeownership Program (CHP) Oversight Committee.

HomeSight, a nonprofit catalyst for equitable homeownership and economic opportunity, worked to pass the legislation that created the CHP, a first-in-the-nation program that aims to repair the economic damage caused by generations of racially discriminatory housing policies.

Smith, working in partnership with the Black Home Initiative Network and the Housing Development Consortium, testified before the Senate Ways and Means Committee in favor of the legislation that created the program.

“So many people and organizations, including HomeSight, worked so hard to bring the Covenant Homeownership Act to fruition,” said Smith. “I’m honored by this opportunity to help ensure the CHP makes a profound impact on black homeownership in Washington state.”

The CHP, administered through the Washington State Housing Finance Commission, creates a special purpose credit program for down payment and closing cost assistance for demographic groups shown to have experienced economic damage from discriminatory housing practices.

In his appointed role, Smith will ensure the program works efficiently and effectively to create new black homeowners in Washington.

“The foundation for generational wealth building is rooted in home ownership,” said Smith. “In being denied that opportunity, generations of people of color have been largely shut out from the benefits afforded by owning a home such as starting a business, sending a kid to college, and even surviving a financial emergency due to a health challenge. The CHP is a critical first step toward acknowledging the harm caused by racist covenant laws and practices and working to reverse the impact of this history.”