The road to home ownership can be long and daunting, but there are organizations in Milwaukee that can help. Here is a list of some agencies offering a range of services, including financial counseling, lending and real estate agent representation.
ACTS HOUSING
ACTS Housing offers U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development-approved counseling and real estate agent representation to help low-income families transition from renting to home buying. Qualifying home buyers can also borrow up to $50,000 from Acts Lending for purchase and repairs.
A free online orientation session is available.
Website: actshousing.org/
Milwaukee location: 2414 W. Vliet St.
Milwaukee phone: (414) 933-2215
Beloit location: 1003 Pleasant St., Beloit, WI
Beloit phone: (608) 365-7077
BRONZEVILLE RESIDENT HOMEOWNERSHIP INITIATIVE
The Bronzeville Homebuyer Assistance Program provides forgivable loans up to $25,000 and technical assistance to help with property renovation needs for residents buying city-owned foreclosed homes in the Bronzeville Initiative area, near the North Martin Luther King Jr. Drive and West North Avenue areas.
A grant program offers up to $5,000 toward down payment costs for Bronzeville residents looking to buy a home in the neighborhood. A separate program provides home buyers with up to $2,000 of credit for household appliances from participating stores.
Website: city.milwaukee.gov/Bronzeville/Real-Estate
Phone: (414) 286-5608
COMMON GROUND-MILWAUKEE RISING
Milwaukee Rising rehabilitates and sells foreclosed properties in the Sherman Park neighborhood to local individuals and families. Matching grants of up to $5,000 are available for home owners wanting to make repairs and improvements.
Contact Bob Connolly at bconnolly@jamescompany.com for more information.
Website: www.commongroundwi.org/milwaukee-rising
COMMUNITY FIRST
Community First offers financial literacy and home maintenance training and connects low-income residents to critical home repair and home buyer services.
Website: cfmke.org/
Address: 3942 W. Lisbon Ave., Milwaukee, WI 53208
Phone: (414) 377-4481
GREENPATH FINANCIAL WELLNESS
GreenPath Financial Wellness offers objective counseling for foreclosure prevention, homebuyer assistance and reverse mortgages. Counselors guide residents through the home buying and maintenance process.
Mortgage delinquency and rental counseling is free. Pre-purchase counseling costs $150 and reverse mortgage counseling costs $199. To schedule an appointment, call (800) 550-1961.
Website: www.greenpath.com/housing/
Address: 10101 W. Greenfield Ave., Suite 170, West Allis, WI 53214
Phone: (800) 550-1961
HABITAT FOR HUMANITY MILWAUKEE
Habitat for Humanity offers affordable housing opportunities and low interest rate mortgages for first-time home buyers. Qualifying home owners help build brand new homes while participating in financial and home maintenance education. Habitat Milwaukee homes are primarily located in Harambee and Midtown neighborhoods. A free online orientation session is available.
Current homeowners can also apply for home repair help.
Website: milwaukeehabitat.org
Address: 3726 N. Booth St.
Phone: (414) 562-6100
More Wisconsin Habitat for Humanity affiliates: www.habitatwisconsin.org/affiliates
HMONG AMERICAN FRIENDSHIP ASSOCIATION
The Hmong American Friendship Association provides bilingual homebuyer counseling to Hmong families across Milwaukee. The staff walks families through the home buying and home ownership process from start to finish.
Contact Lang Xiong at lxiong@hmongfriendship.org or (414) 344-6575.
Website: hmongfriendship.org/services/
Phone: (414) 344-6575
HOUSING AUTHORITY OF THE CITY OF MILWAUKEE
The Housing Authority's Section 32 program offers guidance through the home buying process and sells rehabilitated homes at appraisal value to low-income residents. The agency offers some grants and subsidies for down payment assistance and forgivable second mortgages for current HACM homeowners.
Contact Jeanne Dawson at (414) 286-5405 or jeanne.dawson@hacm.org for more information.
Website: www.hacm.org/programs/homeownership-program/section-32-homeownership-program
Address: 2362 N. 50th St.
Phone: (414) 286-5405
HOUSING RESOURCES, INC.
Housing Resources, Inc. provides HUD-approved home buyer education classes, one-on-one counseling and grant application guidance for prospective homeowners. The agency also offers resources for current homeowners to keep and increase the value of their property. Spanish-speaking counselors are available.
See HRI’s website for information about fees and scheduling.
Website: www.hri-wi.org
Headquarters: 7830 W. Burleigh St., (414) 461-6330
South side location: 1615 S. 22nd St., (414) 383-8831
North side location: 2500 W. Capitol Dr., (414) 449-0705
LAYTON BOULEVARD WEST NEIGHBORS
The group's Turnkey Renovation Program sells transformed city-owned foreclosed properties that are move-in-ready in Silver City, Burnham Park and Layton Park — all neighborhoods on the near south side. Homes are energy efficient and affordable while maintaining historic architectural elements.
Contact Shannon Boone, director of real estate development, at shannon@lbwn.org for more information.
Website: www.lbwn.org/turnkey
Address: 1545 S. Layton Blvd.
Phone: (414) 383-9038
MILWAUKEE CHRISTIAN CENTER
As part of the Neighborhood Improvement Project, the Milwaukee Christian Center develops affordable housing through new home purchases and renovations.Those purchasing through the program must meet income guidelines, secure financing with another agency, and commit to living in the house for a minimum of five years.
For current qualifying homeowners, MCC will do home repairs and install accessibility ramps for free.
Homeowners and potential homebuyers should contact John Kaye at jkaye@mccwi.org or (414) 902-5397.
Website: www.mccwi.org/
Address: 807 S. 14th St.
Phone: (414) 645-5350
NEAR WEST SIDE PARTNERS
NWSP’s Live Work Play incentive program offers down payment assistance in $3,000 forgivable loans. Homebuyers must work at a Near West Side business and purchase a home in one of the seven Near West Side neighborhoods. Participants will also receive financial and technical education.
Website: https://www.nearwestsidemke.org/liveworkplay
Address: 624 N. 24th St., Milwaukee, WI 53233
Phone: (414) 933- 0640
NEIGHBORHOOD IMPROVEMENT DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION
NIDC’s Homebuyer Assistance Program offers forgivable second mortgage loans up to $20,000 for homebuyers rehabilitating city-owned foreclosed homes.
Those interested should attend an orientation session before applying.
Website: https://city.milwaukee.gov/DCD/NIDC/HBA
Address: 809 N. Broadway, 3rd Floor
Phone: (414) 286-5610
REVITALIZE MILWAUKEE
Revitalize Milwaukee sells renovated foreclosed and donated homes to low- to-moderate-income families. Current homeowners are eligible for free repairs and home improvements.
Website: www.freehomerepairs.org/
Address: 840 N. Old World 3rd St., Suite 600
Phone: (414) 312-7513
RIVERWORKS DEVELOPMENT CORP.
The Riverworks Financial Clinic offers free homeownership coaching and workshops to all Milwaukee residents with a special emphasis on those living in Harambee and Riverwest. Coaches help residents put together step-by-step financial action plans to become a homeowner. To apply, fill out the financial intake forms on the Riverworks website.
Coaches can also guide current homeowners through various home rehab programs available in Milwaukee. For more information on home-repair assistance, contact Amy Rohan at (414) 906-9650, ext. 114.
Website: www.riverworksmke.org/
Address: 526 E. Concordia Ave., Milwaukee, WI 53212
Phone: (414) 906-9650
TAKE ROOT MILWAUKEE
Take Root Milwaukee is an association of more than 40 community organizations, neighborhoods groups, housing counseling agencies, Realtors and lenders that connects residents with resources to buy, maintain or repair a home.
Website: takerootmilwaukee.com/
Phone: (414) 921-4149
UNITED COMMUNITY CENTER
United Community Center provides free HUD-approved individual and group homebuyer and homeowner counseling and education. Individual counseling services include managing credits and budgets, identifying a home to purchase and preparing for mortgage applications. Group sessions are led by a trained bilingual (English and Spanish) counselor.
Website: www.unitedcc.org
Address: 1028 S. 9th St.
Phone: (414) 384-3100
CITY OF MILWAUKEE HOUSING HELP TOOL
For more resources and programs addressing housing needs, use the City of Milwaukee’s Housing Help Tool.
https://city.milwaukee.gov/Strong/HousingHelp
About the Milwaukee's Promise project
Reporter James E. Causey spent the 2019-20 academic year as an O'Brien Fellow in Public Service Journalism at Marquette University, where he was assisted by student researchers Abby Ng, Donna Sarkar and Sebastian Becerra.
Photojournalist Angela Peterson's work was supported by a public service journalism fellowship from the Greater Milwaukee Foundation, which aims to inform and foster civic engagement and rising together to eradicate systemic racism that withholds our region and all people from truly thriving.
All work on the project was done under the guidance of Milwaukee Journal Sentinel editors. Neither Marquette nor the foundation had involvement in decisions about the content or presentation of the work. To support the Journal Sentinel's in-depth local reporting, please subscribe at jsonline.com/deal.