Housing
We believe housing is a human right and want to ensure that there is affordable housing in Collierville.
Collierville is already an expensive place to live, and our Historically Black Neighborhoods and Communities (HBNCs) are at risk due to development, gentrification, predatory lending, and outside investors/landlords. We seek to celebrate and preserve the unique histories of our HBNCs, support neighbors through mutual aid, legal support, and general community organizing for preservation so they can age in place, fight unwanted developments, and pass their property onto their rightful heirs.
For example, in 2021 we noticed that homes in Collierville’s HBNCs were being assessed at nearly twice their previous values which would have led to a massive property tax increase for these neighbors. We brought the attention to our local elected officials, and helped organize a community meeting with the Shelby County Assessor. This work resulted in neighborhood-level re-evaluations. Without this community work, individual property owners would have had to file individual appeals which would have been particularly difficult for neighbors without internet access at home.
Rental properties vs. Owner-Occupant homes in Collierville’s Historically Black Neighborhoods.
There’s nothing wrong with renting! We just want to help long-term residents age in place, pass their homes on to their rightful heirs (if they so choose), and empower them to preserve the history and shape the future of their communities.
Developers, house-flippers, and real estate investors are buying up many of the homes in these three areas of town that are still considered affordable (compared to the rest of the town).
The images below give a snapshot of how many homes are occupied by the owner (grey), and how many are rental properties / owner is not the occupant (red) in three of Collierville’s HBNCs.
Jump to other areas where we’re making an impact:
DEI MUTUAL AID HISTORICAL ACCURACY ELECTION REFORM YOUTH INVESTMENT