A $405,000 acquisition loan from LISC supported by Starbucks made it possible for entrepreneur Ruben Perez to purchase a mixed-use property in Chicago. LISC financing is helping Perez build equity in commercial real estate and serve the low- and medium-income area of the city through his business Guerrero Produce.

A $2.1 million predevelopment loan from LISC helped Gragg Cardona Partners build The Residences at Kenilworth Park, an affordable housing complex adjacent to a wetlands preserve in Northeast D.C. offering supportive services for Medicaid-eligible and other qualified elderly residents 60 and older. The development meets high-quality accessibility standards and provides on-site certified nurses and aides, access to nature, community and nutritious food, among many other keys to well-being.

As inventory shortages and high costs are making Long Beach, CA nearly as unaffordable nearby Los Angeles, $4.34 million acquisition and predevelopment loan from LISC is helping the construction of a new affordable housing community to move forward and provide a range of apartments for families earning 30% AMI to 60% AMI.

Manufactured housing, which 20 million Americans call home, is one of the few affordable housing options in the United States. The residents of two Washington State mobile home communities recently succeeded in purchasing their parks with help from ROC USA and over $2 million in financing from Rural LISC. As a result, they have been able to stabilize their housing costs, upgrade their communities and remain in the places they love.

DC’s Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act granted the 1400 Aspen Street Tenants Association the right to seize their building after a decade long fight. LISC, supplemented by the Department of Housing and Community Development’s Preservation Loan Fund, provided $3.9 million in acquisition financing to the association. Since rising above the COVID-19 pandemic and buyout offers, residents in the building are now settling into their upgraded permanent homes.

The Entrepreneurs of Color Fund (EOCF) is designed to get much-needed capital directly into the hands of small business owners serving communities of color, and has over twenty CDFI partners in local markets across the country, with LISC as national manager. Inclusive Action for the City (IAC) is a community development financial institution and an EOCF partner in Los Angeles providing micro-loans to businesses, with a focus on food vendors. IAC’s Rudy Espinoza explains why protecting street vendors must not be a passing trend but a sustained cultural shift that creates a more inclusive economy.