Voices Blog – News & views for the community development field
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Losing the family home, with ripples down the bloodline
Heirs’ property situations can strain family relationships and put billions of dollars of wealth at stake. Read one woman’s story and learn how she’s now working to help others preserve their family ties, homes, and financial stability.
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Community perspectives and conditions from the Fed’s Beige Book, April 2024
Here’s what nonprofit and community leaders, and workforce professionals serving lower-income people shared with the Federal Reserve for the April 2024 Beige Book.
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A key but underrecognized economic driver: Behavioral health
Two unlikely partners—the New York Fed and SAMHSA—are teaming up in Puerto Rico to highlight and address the connection between mental health, addiction issues, and economic outcomes.
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![[Infographic] Looking under the hood of the auto finance market](https://fedcommunities.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/auto-lending-header.jpg?w=1024)
[Infographic] Looking under the hood of the auto finance market
Purchasing a car is a big deal for most households. But when financing that purchase—a common choice for US consumers—things can get complicated.
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Key insights from the 2023 Small Business Credit Survey
The 2023 Small Business Credit Survey (SBCS) indicates that although small businesses are improving, they still face rising costs and high-interest rates. However, they remain optimistic about future revenue and employment expansion.
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Community perspectives and conditions from the Fed’s Beige Book, March 2024
Here’s what nonprofit and community leaders, and workforce professionals serving lower-income people shared with the Federal Reserve for the March 2024 Beige Book.
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![[Watch] Building Capacity of Community-Based Organizations](https://fedcommunities.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/connecting-communities-building-capacity-community-based-organizations.png?w=1024)
[Watch] Building Capacity of Community-Based Organizations
Explore the innovative strategies employed by community-based organizations (CBOs) nationwide. Gain valuable insights into guiding principles for effectively dispersing funds to underserved communities and strategies for building capacity of CBOs. Watch or listen on demand.
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Recipes for rural prosperity as populations change
Some rural areas are shrinking as young people move away, while others are absorbing an influx of newer US residents. What should rural communities consider as their populations shift?
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Supporting women and work-life balance in today’s economy
Explore the real stories of four women striving for work-life balance, as revealed through the Aspen Institute’s Women in the Economy survey. They share their ideas about how the economy might work better for women.
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CDFI innovations supporting housing access and stability
CDFIs shared innovative practices for supporting homebuyers, homeowners, and residential real estate developers in their responses to the Federal Reserve’s 2023 CDFI Survey.
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Music teacher plants roots in rural Nebraska town
Discover how a dedicated music teacher, Doug Erb, rooted himself in rural Nebraska, navigating the challenges of finding affordable housing and contributing to community growth.
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Is the racial wealth gap closing as more people of color buy homes?
Homeownership is still a major way average families build wealth, and recent data show racial and ethnic homeownership gaps began to lessen slightly during the pandemic. Does this mean the racial wealth divide will shrink?