If you haven’t heard of an organization called NAREB . . . well, now you have.
NAREB — The National Association of Real Estate Brokers — is a historically African-American association of real estate professionals. That such an organization even exists is a historic, in that African Americans were not permitted to live in certain neighborhoods, let alone buy homes. NAREB was created to represent the interests of African Americans “realtists” — real estate professionals who want to serve their communities.
Well, many of the legal barriers to homeownership are gone. However, the wealth gap between African Americans and other segments of Memphis still exists. And since homeownership is still the straightest path to generational wealth, NAREB is out to help 2 million African Americans purchase homes nationwide in the next five years.
Saturday, the local chapter of NAREB hosted a Community Wealth Building day at LeMoyne-Owen College. In addition to workshops on credit repair, mortgages, insurance and other aspects of home buying, several lenders and agencies were also on hand to provide valuable info for people who may not know where to start.
While I was there, I got the chance to talk with Memphis NAREB President Sherita McCray about the event and what prospective homeowners can do to learn more. Watch that above. But I also got to talk with Sheryl Muhammad, who will succeed McCray as president, about NAREB’s national 2 million homeowners initiative. Check that out below.
To learn more about NAREB and homeownership in Memphis, visit www.nareb.com.
