By Ben Jordan
Calibrating the perception of marginalized communities’ current social, economic, and well-being status is critical as the country transitions toward a more hopeful 2023. Coming from behind the shadows of the worldwide pandemic of 2020 and the whirlwind recovery efforts of the last two years, opportunities are present. In the present reality of recession signals, it is vitally important for communities that share the historical experiences of lack and depleted resources to recognize the nuanced opportunities laying in plain sight. This year 2023, will be the year for black and brown communities to take informed action to leverage work experience for higher positions or pay and stabilize their families by purchasing a home.
Inflation is nothing new for black and brown communities because of their experience with the lack referenced earlier. Most black and brown communities are wage earners employed by small businesses. Within this business sector, job opportunities are plentiful as post-Covid recovery funding seeks to aid small businesses to rebound from mandatory 2020 shutdowns. This situation creates multiple opportunities for conscientious employees to leverage their experience, and skill sets to ask for raises, request more training, or promote their talents on the open market. In addition, leveraging with your current employer now provides an excellent opportunity for a change in career path. Employers are reporting increased recruitment and staffing challenges in a post-Covid era. Many are offering training with less focus on potential employees’ experience to fill critical positions. Here’s an opportunity every wage-earner employee should review throughout 2023. This coming year will present a brief opportunity for significantly increased pay for individuals willing to take measured action steps.
Recently financial markets have taken their usual historic and cyclical hits. Most likely black and brown communities receive this news in their 401K or retirement accounts statements. As painful as those statements feel, they are not reflective of how most of us live. Black and brown communities are not day traders, nor do they talk to investment bankers. Most attempt to accumulate wealth through the purchase of real estate via buying a personal residence for their families. The more sought-after real estate markets in recent years have been dominated by cash offers at and above asking price, cash investing Wall Street investors. Therefore, in recent years the access ramp to the wealth-building expressway has been cut off to marginalized communities. Talks of recession and elevating inflation have prompted the Federal Reserve Bank to swift action with aggressive rate hikes that eventually trickled toward mortgage rate increases. These market conditions provide families that were previously locked out of purchasing a home a small window to enter the housing/real estate market as pricing comes back to more homeowner market conditions, inventory increases, and cash buyers step away, here’s your opportunity. Yes, mortgage rates are higher, but if you can afford to pull the trigger now and purchase a home, do it. Take you and your family out of the state of uncertainty of not knowing whether the landlord will increase rents beyond your budget. Mortgage rates can be refinanced in time. If you can purchase without the help of sub-prime hybrid mortgages, do it in 2023, and you won’t regret it. The window on this opportunity will have its expiration. In either or both scenarios, decide now and take informed action, the opportunity is now.
Ben Jordan is a real estate development consultant and community development professional with twenty-five years of experience in real estate and mortgage banking. He is currently the President at Goodhope Development Consulting Group, Inc., partnering with clients, and landowners in TN, AL, MS, GA, TX, and AR.
