The Senate Committee on Indian Affairs on October 16 held an oversight hearing on “Lending Opportunities: Opening the Door to Homeownership in Indian Country.” Tribal leaders, including Pueblo of Isleta Governor Max Zuni and Ft. Belknap Indian Community Council Member Nathaniel Mount, spoke about the need for housing in their communities and the opportunities and hurdles of federal programs. HUD Assistant Secretary for Public and Indian Housing Hunter Kurtz, Bureau of Indian Affairs Director Darryl LaCounte, and Center for Indian Country Development Director Patrice Kunesh discussed how they are working to alleviate some of the barriers to homeownership and lending that Native people face.
In their opening remarks, Mr. Zuni and Mr. Mount described the critical housing needs in their communities. Both remarked that younger tribal members who leave tribal areas to pursue educational or career opportunities struggle to find housing when they return because the number of homes and financing opportunities are limited. Mr. Mount noted that many families at Ft. Belknap live with 13 to 18 people spanning three generations in a single home. The last HUD-financed home on the reservation was built in 1994, and 150 families are on the housing authority’s waiting list. Both Isleta Pueblo and Ft. Belknap Indian Community have found the best home financing opportunities through Native-led institutions such as Island Mountain Development Group and Tiwa Lending Services, a Native Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI). In her testimony, Ms. Kunesh advocated for support to Native CDFIs as a way to expand much needed access to capital and credit in tribal areas.
Senators on the committee encouraged further action by both HUD and BIA to improve homeownership and lending opportunities on trust lands. Committee Chair John Hoeven (R-ND) told BIA Director LaCounte that the agency must keep working to streamline the loan application process, and several other members joined Chair Hoeven in questioning Mr. Kurtz about the limitations of HUD’s Section 184 Indian Home Loan Guarantee program. Mr. Kurtz acknowledged the program has had less success in securing loans on trust lands and said HUD is currently undertaking rule-making for Section 184 to improve it. He also promised to look into strengthening relationships with Native CDFIs.
Several witnesses shared that many private lenders are reluctant to provide loans for homes on trust lands and often charge much higher interest rates. In response to a question from Senator Steve Daines (R-MT) about how to shorten the timeframe for a home loan, Mr. LaCounte stated, “There are a whole lot of lending institutions that don’t want to lend money on reservations or to Indian people. They stall, delay, don’t provide us with what we need, and sometimes they just go away.” The lack of access to the market has led to the prominence of manufactured housing, the lending for which comprises about 70% of loans made on trust lands and comes with high interest rates.
Learn more about the hearing at: https://bit.ly/33FMgjm