COLUMBIA, Md and LOS GATOS, Ca. – Enterprise Community Partners (“Enterprise”) and Netflix, Inc. today announced Netflix’s $25 million commitment in Equitable Path Forward, Enterprise’s new five-year, $3.5 billion nationwide initiative to help dismantle the deeply-rooted legacy of racism in housing – from the types of homes that are built, where they’re built, who builds them, and the wealth that is generated from them.

The multipronged initiative establishes an equitable path forward for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (“BIPOC”) and other historically marginalized housing providers by: filling the gaping capital gap from decades of systemic racism; strengthening providers through advisory services and other support; and creating new career pathways to diversify leadership in real estate.

“Our vision is nothing short of dismantling the legacy of racism in housing,” said Priscilla Almodovar, president and chief executive officer, Enterprise Community Partners. “By investing in these housing providers who are on the ground and engaged with their communities, Equitable Path Forward will lead to a new and needed level of responsiveness, investment and equity in the communities that get built.” The challenge is urgent. After decades of systemic racism in housing – from government-sanctioned discrimination like redlining and race-based federal mortgage programs, to restrictive deed covenants based on the color of your skin, to predatory lending and discriminatory property tax collection – our communities bear the scars. These policies and practices have led to residential segregation, to home ownership rates for white Americans that are nearly twice as high than for Black Americans, to a widening wealth gap with the median net worth of a white household nearly eight times that of a Black household, to the real estate industry itself where only 2% of development companies are Black-led, and just 1.5% of real estate assets under management are controlled by minorityowned firms. Even among community development corporations, only 16% are minority-led.

These disparities have been driven by a range of factors, among which, historically, housing providers of color – despite community knowledge and credibility – have been unable to access sufficient capital for sustained growth of their operations and real estate portfolios.

Equitable Path Forward aims to close the gap through a $3.5 billion effort to support BIPOC and other historically marginalized housing providers who create and preserve affordable homes in diverse communities, inclusive of a:

1. $350 million Growth Fund that will provide debt, equity, grants and innovative credit enhancement that together will attract an additional $3.1 billion of capital;

2. $15 million program for cultivation of local development organizations and small businesses; and,

3. $10 million leadership program.

“Black and other historically marginalized leaders have been fighting to better their communities for decades but have lacked the capital to do so. That’s why Netflix is investing $25 million in Enterprise’s initiative,” said Netflix Treasury Director Shannon Alwyn. “We invite more companies to join the movement and support visionary initiatives like Equitable Path Forward.”

“Together with our partners, we will close the racial disparities in the housing industry that perpetuate the racial disparities in our communities,” said Almodovar. “To do so, we need to rebalance both power and profit in our industry. Enterprise will leverage $10 million of our own capital, expertise and unique end-to-end platform to do our part. A big thanks to Netflix for their support and leadership on this issue.”