ASSET BUILDING AND FINANCIAL SERVICE ADVOCACY FOR IMMIGRANT COMMUNITIES

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• ASSET BUILDING AND FINANCIAL SERVICE ADVOCACY FOR
  IMMIGRANT COMMUNITIES
•  
• CFED 2008 Assets Learning Conference, Washington
  DC
• September 12, 2008

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About MAF

• The Mission Asset Fund is the first
  neighborhood-based, community-led, asset-building
  organization in the country
• Our mission is to expand access to financial
  services, savings and investment opportunities
  for residents of the Mission District to build a
  more secure economic future for themselves, their
  families and their community

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Our History

• Levi Strauss Co. sold their factory on Valencia
  St.
• 1 million commitment to Levi Strauss Foundation
  for Mission community development project
• MAF committee formed community leaders and LSF
  senior staff
• Committee held community forums to explore how
  funds could be used to support residents

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Community Engagement
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The Mission District

• The Mission is a vibrant working-class community
  with a long history as a gateway for new
  immigrants rich in social networks, active civic
  engagement, and strong nonprofit leadership.
• The 1.5 square mile neighborhood is densely
  populated with over 60,000 residents, including
  50 percent Latino and 11 percent Asian/Pacific
  Islander households.
• Nearly one-half of Mission residents are Spanish
  speakers and more than one-in-three speak only
  Spanish.
• Forty-five percent of Mission residents are
  foreign-born.

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in pictures
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in pictures
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in video
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Why dont we own our community?

• Nationally, for every 1 dollar in assets held by
  a white household, a Latino household only has
  13.2 cents
• About half (50 percent) of Mexican immigrants do
  not have a savings or checking account same is
  true for half of all Latino adults in the Mission
• 22 percent of Latinos dont have a credit history
  same is true for 44 percent of all households
  in the Mission
• In the Mission, the number (22) of pawnshops,
  check-cashers and payday lenders is almost twice
  the number (12) of banks

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Create asset-building programs that fit the
realities of Mission residents

• Matched Savings Accounts (IDAs)
• Accessible to individuals in low-income
  households earning up to 80 of AMI
• 12 match towards the following goals
• Homeownership
• Small business
• Education/training
• 11 match to help remove barriers to
  asset-building, particularly towards the
  following goals
• Citizenship fees
• Penalties associated with adjusting immigration
  status
• Retirement savings

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Create culturally-relevant financial products

• Cestas Populares
• Built on immigrant tradition of lending circles,
  Cestas Populares will help participants create
  and build mainstream credit
• Cestas or Tandas traditionally function as
  rotating, interest free, credit associations
  they are voluntarily formed by a group of
  participants who agree to make regular
  contributions to a fund, which is distributed in
  whole or in part to each contributor in rotation
• Cestas Populares will recognize this informal
  financial activity and report it to credit
  agencies
• Provide wrap-around financial education services
  and information to help cesta members transition
  to the financial mainstream

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Create culturally-relevant financial services

• Financial Coaching
• Help clients understand and access financial
  products and services and to develop long-term
  financial plans
• Promotoras
• Train and support peer organizers to connect
  residents to asset-building opportunities
• Cooperativas
• Provide technical assistance, education and
  support to worker-owned business and housing
  co-ops

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Take Away Messages

• Asset-building programs and policies work for
  Latino, immigrant communities
• MAF is creating culturally-relevant financial
  products that bridge the path into the financial
  mainstream
• MAFs culturally-relevant products are viable
  alternatives to predatory lenders

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• José Quiñonez, Executive Director
• jose_at_missionassetfund.org
• Mission Asset Fund
• 1500 South Van Ness Ave 200
• San Francisco, CA 94110
• www.missionassetfund.org
• www.fondopopular.org