The month of June brings sunshine, ice cream, and National Homeownership month! This month is dedicated to celebrating the value that owning a home brings to families and neighborhoods across the country. It also celebrates the positives of being a homeowner, and this can encourage the people around you to start looking for their own home too!
History
For a majority of the 1800s, most Americans had no way of owning a home because home loans and mortgages were not common practice. Once the National Banks Act was passed in the 1860s, mortgages started to become more common from this new nationwide banking system.
Only a few decades later, the Great Depression ravaged America, leaving banks with little money to lend and Americans with even less to use. This deficit left current homeowners unable to pay their mortgages and potential homeowners were no longer able to afford a home. To combat these issues, the US government in the 1930s established the Home Owners’ Loan Corporation, the Federal Housing Administration, and the Federal National Mortgage Association that is better known as Fannie Mae. By creating these institutions, the US government prevented a housing market crash and took homeownership to a new level.
A decade later in the 1940s, the G.I. Bill was passed to help veterans of World War II receive subsidized mortgages. Twenty years later in the 60s another milestone was hit with Congress passing the Fair Housing Act that banned discrimination in housing based on race, religion, nationality, or gender. Since the creation of the Federal Housing Administration, over 44 million Americans became homeowners while an almost $4 trillion loss of household wealth was saved by the administration.
Bill Clinton originally made National Homeownership Week in 1995 to increase homeownership in America, and George Bush extended this time to all of June in 2002. They believed that owning a home was a large part of the American dream and wanted to promote the value of being a homeowner.
How You Can Celebrate National Ownership Month
- Get involved in local projects: If new housing developments are being implemented in your area that are promoting things like new building techniques or eco-friendly techniques, show them off! You can even get ahold of local officials to show off these developments.
- Educate others: Bringing housing experts and local homeowners together through a forum or club is a great way to talk about and address different housing topics in your area. These housing experts could be a realtor or a mortgage banker.
- Get involved in your community: There are many kinds of local community service projects like building a homeless shelter, donations to different organizations, or even fixing playground equipment at a local park. You can create your own community service project too!
Value of Homeownership
- Community: Being a homeowner means being a part of a neighborhood. Having a strong connection to your neighbors and neighborhood leads to more commitment to volunteering and getting involved in local housing projects.
- Sense of Pride: Owning your own home is a huge accomplishment, and the space is all yours. Feel good about it!
- Safe Space: Owning your own home gives you a sense of privacy and safety. These things are important for mental health as well as the countries ever-changing health issues.
- Equity: Home equity grows as you make your mortgage payments. This results in “forced savings” that can be very useful later in life.
- Home Value: Home values are projected to increase, meaning the investment you made on your home is likely to gain more value.
- Stability: Being a homeowner means you can have better control over your payments. Rent prices tend to rise over the years, but mortgages stay relatively the same.
