Real Estate Investment Co-ops
A robust body of research demonstrates that the racial wealth gap can be partially attributed to low levels of real estate ownership and significant undervaluation of assets — including housing and businesses — in predominantly Black communities.33 Community ownership models are a promising mechanism to close this gap, as community land trusts, in particular, have been shown to be successful in distributing land-based wealth intergenerationally.34 Brookings Institutue.
We help neighbors own their neighborhoods
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What kinds of REICos do we support?
Committed groups of neighborhood residents working with their neighborhood association, and supported by local, mission-aligned nonprofits. Community engagement should connect with the full diversity of residents in a neighborhood.
- Located in Minnesota
- At least 5 co-founders, of whom at least 20 – 27% are Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC)
- Have a commitment to broad-based governance, including neighborhood residents and/or tenants
“Real estate has long been used as a tool to extract wealth from neighborhoods. REICos flip the script and share the benefits of ownership locally.”
Benjamin Tsai, Director of the Shared Ownership Center @ Nexus
Community Wealth Building: benefits can be shared by all members, the community & tenants
Anti-displacement
Prevent real estate speculation by long-term ownership of real estate that is affordable and supportive of local businesses
Corridor Revitalization
The community knows its own needs and can guide development accordingly
Neighborhoods are at their best when owned locally
How We Can Help
We help community members create Real Estate Investment Cooperatives. Our services support alignment between multiple stakeholders for project success, and include cooperative governance design and pre-launch technical assistance.
- Free consultation
- Intake and assessment
- Developing co-op values, mission and vision
- Stakeholder analysis
- Strategic planning
- Governance design process
- Legal liaison for incorporation support
- Funding connections
The timeline of REICos is highly variable, but on average, incorporation can take 3 – 6 months, and acquiring a property can take 6 months or more.
Are you and your neighbors interested in starting a local real estate co-op?
Local Partners
African Career Education and Resources (ACER), City of Minneapolis, City of Saint Paul, Creative Enterprise Zone, East Phillips Neighborhood Institute, East Side Area Business Association
