An innovative $1 million private and tribal initiative that since 2010 has put 25 families into new houses or on the path to homeownership was so successful that it was running out of money to meet demand.
So the Tribal Council renewed its financial commitment with a new $500,000 allocation to a locally grown housing stimulus program that will add six or seven new suburban-style homes on the reservation over the next year or so.
Despite a struggling national economy, the dream of homeownership — long out of reach on the reservation for a variety of reasons — is flourishing in Winnebago, said Lance Morgan, president and chief executive of Ho-Chunk Inc. The private contributions of Ho-Chunk, a Winnebago economic development corporation, made up the bulk of what tribal leaders spent. No direct federal funding or tribal casino profits were involved.
"Housing and community growth on the Winnebago Reservation seems destined to continue at a rapid pace,'' Morgan said.
Affordable housing and homeownership are vital parts of creating economic self-sufficiency on the reservation, he said, along with education and jobs.
"It's about hope as much as getting a home,'' Morgan said.
The housing program was created and funded by Winnebagos. It allows potential homeowners to pay a monthly house payment that is not much more than rent and to start, for the first time, building equity in a home and a family inheritance.
The problems of establishing homeownership on Indian reservations have persisted for generations. Reasons for lagging levels of Indian homeownership include low incomes, weak credit histories, and a lack of mortgage financing and real estate lending on tribal trust lands.
The need is great, officials said.
Nearly half the tribe's population is under age 18. Housing demand over the next decade or two is expected to require at least 100 additional housing units — perhaps 150 to 200.
The new housing program provides $50,000 in down payment assistance to tribal members living on the Thurston County reservation. Combined with two other tribal programs, some new buyers could receive up to $75,000 in total down payment assistance on homes with price tags of roughly $150,000 to $200,000.
The enhanced down payment assistance grants trim monthly mortgage payments by 40 to 50 percent.
Prospective reservation homeowners are screened to ensure that they have the ability to make the monthly payments and can meet other financial obligations of a mortgage. They also attend classes on basic home maintenance.
"People still have to come up with the rest of the mortgage for a home,'' Morgan said. "They have to clean up their credit and maybe get a better job so that they can qualify, but this can give them enough of a boost to boost them into the middle class — and that's been a pipe dream in our world.''
The Tribal Council's $500,000 commitment is part of a $1.3 million dividend paid to the tribe by Ho-Chunk last year. Ho-Chunk pays a 20 percent dividend to the tribe based on net income from the company's businesses.
Much of the ability of Ho-Chunk and the tribe to stimulate housing growth on the reservation comes from the company's involvement in a U.S. Small Business Administration program that makes it possible for Ho-Chunk to compete for and win government contracts that otherwise would be awarded to much larger corporations, Morgan said.
The company has 26 subsidiaries and operates across the United States and in five other nations. Its businesses include construction, manufacturing, information technology and wholesale distribution. Those businesses employ more than 1,400 people.
The council's allocation provides $300,000 in direct funding for the new mortgage assistance program. It also provides $200,000 for gas, electric, sewer, water, streets and other infrastructure improvements in Ho-Chunk Village, a suburban-style commercial and residential area on the north edge of Winnebago, launched in 2003.
Most of the new dwellings in the down payment assistance program are constructed there.
Prior to the council's allocation, it was estimated that only six more homes could be funded under the down payment program, which has already built about a dozen homes, with eight more in various stages of completion, Morgan said.
At least 11 additional tribal families have applied for the program and now will have a chance to take advantage of it.
"We're making a comeback and we're doing it on our own,'' Morgan said.
Contact the writer: 402-444-1127, david.hendee@owh.com
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