ACCESS TO CAPITAL

Related Grants Related Investments

Sustained access to capital and the ability to preserve assets are critical for individuals, families, and communities to create wealth and achieve prosperity. The Foundation supports financial services and products that enable low-income people to improve their personal balance sheets, increase economic stability, and avoid wealth depleting transactions.

The Foundation will consider supporting efforts that: provide financial services to low-income people and communities; offer effective financial literacy and education programs; help low-income people build savings; and combat predatory or unfair lending practices. The Foundation also considers support for efforts to broaden the adaptation of private market financing mechanisms, or to promote community reinvestment to accelerate wealth creation for low-income families.

The Reinvestment Fund, Inc. TRF has financed 11 solar town homes for low- or moderate-income families in southwest Philadelphia. These homes are among the most energy efficient affordable housing available on the market. Heron supports TRF with general support grants and a program-related investment.

Through its access to capital strategy, the Foundation will also consider support for community development financial institutions (CDFIs) that serve low-income communities. CDFIs seeking the Foundation’s support must have as their core work financing home ownership, business enterprise or commercial real estate development that creates jobs, or quality and affordable child care.

The Foundation also funds practitioner associations that promulgate best practices, especially those helping CDFIs to track the social impact of their investments.