KANSAS CITY, Mo. — In the next year, a lot will change on a street corner in the Ivanhoe Southeast’s neighborhood of Kansas City, Missouri. Three groups are coming together in a first of its kind collaboration to create affordable housing. They’ll renovate one vacant home and build a brand new home on an empty lot next door.
“It truly is empowering people through homeownership,” said Will Block of ReNew KC Neighborhoods. “There are chances all across the community, it just takes organizations to come together to do the work.”
ReNew KC Neighborhoods is one of the organizations coming together to do the work. The nonprofit partnered with Community LINC and Equitable Development Partners in a new initiative to create houses families living in poverty can afford to buy.
“I feel really fortunate to spend my days thinking about how to help get people in homes and help them stay in their homes,” said Anna White of Community LINC.
Her organization’s role is finding a family to purchase the home. Community LINC is accepting applications by calling or emailing the intake coordinator, Jacqueline Hunter, at jhunter@communitylinc.org or 816-595-5556.
Qualified families must earn 50 percent or less of the area median income. That total ranges based on the size of the family, but is generally about $60,000 for a family of four. Community LINC will help the family plan a budget, fix its credit and apply for the mortgage.
“That looks like teachers, nurses, city employees, people that work at our favorite restaurants, coffee shops, retail,” White said. “A lot of people who make Kansas City go, but anymore are completely priced out of home ownership.”
ReNew KC Neighborhoods and Equitable Development Partners will handle the renovations and construction. They are using private donations as well as money from the city’s Affordable Housing Trust Fund to pay for the project. Those investments will allow the groups to keep the sale price affordable.
In 2022, voters in Kansas City approved committing $50 million to affordable housing over five years. Since the city established the Affordable Housing Trust Fund in 2018, it’s awarded $17.9 million to 28 different projects.
“It’s great to align with local leadership and city officials to see we both share that goal to give back to Kansas City through empowering homeownership,” Block said.
Ultimately, the group hopes this partnership paves the way for other organizations to create affordable housing in Kansas City.
Community LINC and ReNew KC Neighborhoods both accept private donations on their websites from people willing to support their goals.
