A new program is aiming to increase homeownership opportunities in historically redlined communities, Gov. Wes Moore announced on Monday.
The UPLIFT program will be administered through the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development and will address homes impacted by appraisal gaps by “accelerating the pace of new construction and rehabilitation of quality affordable housing in strategically identified communities across Maryland,” read the press release announcing the program.
“UPLIFT” stands for Utilizing Progressive Lending Investments to Finance Transformation, a nod to the fact that one of the most powerful drivers of the racial wealth gap is lack of homeownership opportunities. Land and home ownership is a facet of generational wealth systemically denied to Black people through redlining, which has been a documented practice in Baltimore.
“Tackling the racial wealth gap is a core priority of the Moore-Miller Administration. We must actively work to reverse decades of disinvestment through good policy decisions and innovative programs like this one,” Moore said in a statement. “Maryland will be a leader in these efforts, and we will continue to expand work, wages, and wealth for all Maryland families.”
Through the UPLIFT program, selected developers will build, sell, and rehabilitate affordable housing in targeted neighborhoods based on design and construction standards for quality, timely production, and accountability.
Since homes in these communities typically appraise for less than the cost of building them, due to patterns of historic disinvestment, which has depressed the home values, UPLIFT will fund the difference between the appraised value and the sales price. Over time, the new homes are expected to elevate home values and reduce the gap in UPLIFT neighborhoods, thereby helping close the racial wealth gap.
One-quarter of the homes in the UPLIFT program will be reserved for households with incomes below the area median income to become homeowners.
UPLIFT is funded for $10 million through the Fiscal Year 2024 budget. It builds on the department’s Homeownership Works (HOW) pilot program, created in 2021. The first phase of the HOW program is investing $10 million into new construction and rehabilitation projects in Johnston Square in Baltimore and Pine Street in Cambridge. The first four homes rehabilitated in Johnston Square, valued at approximately $24,000 pre-rehabilitation, are now entering the market priced in the low $300,000 range.
“We have an opportunity to counteract historic disinvestment in our communities by building vibrant neighborhoods, improving home energy efficiency and quality of life, and building social connections between residents,” said Jake Day, secretary of Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development, in a statement. “This is just the beginning of those efforts, and we will continue to create new opportunities for Maryland homeowners to thrive.”
UPLIFT programs must be located in both a Low-Income Census Tract, and in an area designated as a Maryland Sustainable Community in order to qualify. To see areas that qualify for the UPLIFT program, click this link. To view the UPLIFT draft program guide, click this link. Comments will be accepted on the draft through Dec. 29, 2023, and can be emailed to UPLIFT.DHCD@Maryland.gov.
