CFE Receives $3 Million Investment from JPMorgan Chase
Press Release
Washington, D.C.
April 8, 2024
We are pleased to announce that City First Enterprises was awarded $3 million by JPMorgan Chase to support Black and Latino first-time homebuyers in achieving their homebuying dreams in Washington, D.C. and Maryland. Through our subsidiary and CDFI mortgage lender, City First Homes dba Homes by CFE, we support first-time borrowers with funds to lower their out-of-pocket expenses associated with buying a home. Downpayment and closing costs are some of the most significant barriers to homeownership, especially for communities that historically have been excluded from wealth-building opportunities. The D.C. and Baltimore Metro areas, where we work, have one of the nation’s highest income inequality levels, with income strongly correlated with race and ethnicity. While most people are facing challenges to homeownership, the gap is widest for Black and Latino residents. Our innovative program operates as a Special Purpose Credit Program (SPCP), bridging the homeownership gap by offering up to 20% of the home’s purchase price for down payment assistance and additional closing cost support for income-qualified borrowers. Since the launch of our program in mid-2022, we have successfully supported 17 homebuyers purchase their first homes. The $3 million award from JPMorgan will be leveraged to support 100 first-time homebuyers by 2026.
“Everyone knows that homeownership is one of the key engines that powers social mobility and wealth building over generations; it just hasn’t been accessible to all of us. We launched Homes by CFE to demonstrate that with equitable access to flexible capital, borrowers who were previously locked out of owning a home can bridge this gap,” said Oswaldo Acosta, CEO of City First Enterprises. “Given how homeownership works in this country, it’s crucial to have private-sector partners like JPMorgan Chase helping to lead the way forward on this innovative model.”
To learn more about Homes By CFE and its downpayment SPCP, visit https://www.homesbycfe.org/.
To learn more about JPMorgan Chase’s full announcement, read their press release here.
Media Contact: Jasmine Williams
Communications and Development Manager
“Given how homeownership works in this country, it’s crucial to have private-sector partners like JPMorgan Chase helping to lead the way forward on this innovative model.”
– Oswaldo Acosta, CEO, City First Enterprises
