For many tribal members, home ownership is a challenge but with a new program from Freddie Mac, owning a home is more of a reality. Freddie Mac has announced the launch of a new mortgage product to support members of Native American communities.
HeritageOne is the new product that will provide affordable financing options for single-family homes on tribal lands in rural areas. While other programs have supported community housing needs, this new product from Freddie Mac benefits individual tribal members directly.
HeritageOne will also provide financial advice and other resources to members of tribes, including tribal members buying their first home.
Providing Greater Access to Home Ownership
Freddie Mac’s Duty to Serve Plan outlines HeritageOne and how it can help tribal members achieve home ownership. The Plan also details Freddie Mac’s commitment to provide housing support for tribal members in rural tracts within Indian Country.
“The limited access to affordable mortgage financing options has affected our communities for far too long and it has impacted the ability of our members to build generational wealth through homeownership,” said Tawney Brunsch, Executive Director of Lakota Funds, the first-ever Native community development financial institution on tribal lands. “HeritageOne can help break down these walls, providing greater access to responsible homeownership and broader economic opportunities through financial counseling for our historically underserved communities. We look forward to making HeritageOne widespread in tribal lands.”
How to Qualify for Home Ownership Mortgage Program
To qualify for a HeritageOne mortgage, least one person in the household seeking a loan to buy a home must be member of a tribe. The the tribal member seeking a loan to buy a home must occupy the property as their primary home. The tribe must be taking part in HUD’s most recent Section 184 Participating Tribes List. Or their tribe could have a memo of understanding with Freddie Mac.
More information and eligibility requirements are available Freddie Mac’s website.
What is Freddie Mac?
Congress created Freddie Mac as a private company in 1970 to help ensure an affordable supply of mortgage funds and increase home ownership. Today it is a company with shareholders that operates under a congressional charter, according to the Federal Housing Financing Agency. A shareholder is an individual or entity that holds shares or stocks in a company.
With its new HeritageOne financing product, Freddie Mac is innovating to meet important home ownership needs of tribal members. “With HeritageOne, we are again breaking new ground in our efforts to safely and responsibly expand opportunities in traditionally underserved communities,” said Sonu Mittal, Single-Family Senior Vice President of Acquisitions at Freddie Mac. “Our commitment to make home possible for Native American families not only requires long-term planning and prudent execution, but strong partnerships with industry members and tribal leaders. Through this collaboration, we can help create more affordable mortgage options in tribal lands and rural areas.”
Learn More
You can find more information about Freddie Mac’s new HeritageOne product here.
Freddie Mac has also developed a Frequently Asked Questions webpage for interested tribal members.