Day By Fletcher Word
The Truth Editor
The Greater Toledo Realtist Association hosted a day of learning, networking and financial empowerment on Saturday, April 12, at the Wayman Palmer YMCA on Bancroft as dozens of Realtist members and assorted vendors offered attendees an opportunity to learn and take advantage of growth opportunities.
Building Black Wealth Day was part of an annual 100 city tour hosted by the National Association of Real Estate Brokers (NAREB) which consisted of seminars on a range of topics such as homeownership and property investment to business startups and other wealth-building opportunities.
The local event was hosted by the Realtist Association in partnership with the Delta Sigma theta Sorority, Toledo Alumnae Chapter.
“We are here to educate and inspire the community to build Black wealth,” said DeLisa Moore, president of the Greater Toledo Realtist Association.
“The wealth gap is huge because we are not educated on a lot of things … a lot of our people lose property because they just don’t know.”
Saturday’s event started at 9 a.m. and provided attendees with workshops and sessions on topics such as the ABC’s of home buying, down payment assistance, how to manage inherited property, how to manage equity, disaster preparedness and title searches and their importance.
In addition to hearing from the realtists, such as Blair Johnson and Rob Pasker who spoke on various wealth building topics, those in attendance also heard from bankers such as JacQui Wilson of State Bank, state Senator Paula Hicks Hudson, attorney Art Battle, as well as other community leaders and industry experts.
“Having the family educated on what to do with property that an older generation might have had, so that they don’t lose a family home, is important … what to do with the equity in the house, buying another property, sparks generational wealth,” said Moore about the issue of how to maximize property families may already possess.
However, the key issue on Saturday was how to start building wealth when starting from a background of little or no wealth.
“If we can just plant a seed and change the mindset and help our community learn how to get ready to buy a house, how to buy a house, dealing with credit… ,” said Moore. “We are trying to erase fears. Our community has so many generational renters and we want to get them into the mindset to become generational homeowners. When you don’t see it, you don’t think it is attainable.”
The Greater Toledo REALTIST® Association (GTRA) is a Trade Association whose mission is to build a supportive infrastructure to become a positive and dominant influence in the Ohio real estate market. They aim to represent a unified voice for African Americans and other underserved populations, brokers, agents, affiliates and the clients [they] serve.
The group is a local board of The National Association of Real Estate Brokers, Inc. (NAREB®), that was formed in 1947 by African American real estate professionals out of a need to secure the right to equal housing opportunities, regardless of race, creed or color.
The organization is not just an organization for realtors but anyone who is interested in breaking down barriers in black homeownership. Within the organization there are lawyers, brokers, contractors, event planners and title reps.
