- Details
- By Tribal Business News Staff
- Real Estate
The Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation — more commonly known as Freddie Mac — said today that it plans to launch a new mortgage product designed to support homeownership among Native Americans.
The Tysons, Va.-based financial giant said its new HeritageOne mortgage will provide affordable financing options for single-family properties on tribal lands in rural areas. The new mortgage program will also provide financial counseling and other resources to members of Native American tribes, especially first-time homebuyers.
To qualify for a HeritageOne mortgage, at least one borrower in the household must be an enrolled member of a federally recognized Native American tribe who will occupy the property as a primary residence.
“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,” Tawney Brunsch, executive director of Lakota Funds, the first-ever Native community development financial institution (CDFI) on a reservation.
The new HeritageOne product will provide greater access to responsible homeownership and broader economic opportunities through financial counseling for our historically underserved communities, Brunsch said in a statement.
The intent behind HeritageOne is outlined in Freddie Mac’s 2022-2024 Duty to Serve Plan, which specifically details the publicly traded company’s commitment to provide housing support for tribal members in rural tracts within Indian Country.
With HeritageOne, Freddie Mac is “breaking new ground” in its efforts to expand opportunities in traditionally underserved communities, Sonu Mittal, single-family senior vice president of acquisitions at Freddie Mac, said in a statement.
