Setting the Stage: What Does Homeownership Mean to You?

MODULE 2: Setting the Stage: What Does Homeownership Mean to You?

ENHANCING AND IMPLEMENTING HOMEOWNERSHIP PROGRAMS IN NATIVE COMMUNITIES

In this course, we’ll be focusing on how to bring homeownership opportunities to your tribal nation and your community. We recognize that homeownership may not be on everyone’s radar, and that some tribes may not be focused on homeownership today. While many Native nations traditionally had strong concepts of home and homeownership in the past, today tribal members (and leaders) may see homeownership as complicated, overwhelming, and hard to achieve.

In this course, we will break down the different components of homeownership, looking at what it takes and how we can build on traditional concepts of homeownership to expand culturally appropriate homeownership in Native communities.

As we begin this discussion, let’s look at what homeownership means to you.

What does homeownership mean to you?

Hearing from Homeowners

Now, let’s hear from some Native homeowners in South Dakota.

Go to www.nativehomeownership.com/#stories.

As you listen to the homeowners, are there any concepts of homeownership that you’d like to add to the list we’ve made above?

These are some of the key reasons we promote homeownership. In this course, we’ll look at why homeownership makes sense for individuals and families, and why it makes sense for tribes and communities.

Native Concepts of Homeownership

In laying the foundation for our work together, we also want to look at how Native communities have traditionally viewed homeownership. Homeownership has been central, for example, to some pueblos in the Southwest. While other tribes were traditionally nomadic, there was always a base — always a place that was “home.”

How did your community traditionally view the concepts of home and homeownership? How were communities designed? What values did these communities reflect?

What does housing look like now in many Native communities? What values does this housing reflect?

VISIONING FOR THE FUTURE

Later in this course, we’ll start designing communities, exploring how we’d like our neighborhoods and communities to look in the future. But for now, let’s share the values we’d like our visioning for the future to reflect.

What values are reflected in the housing and neighborhoods you’d like to see in the future?

How Did We Get to Where We Are Today?

In order to understand where we are today, it’s important to look at history.

As we look at history, we’ll develop a timeline. First, we’ll take a look at an overview of historical policy eras developed by the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI).

Major Historical Events Shaping Native Homeownership

The following table highlights some of the major events and legislative initiatives by the U.S. Congress under its Plenary Powers under the U.S. Constitution impacting American Indians, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians.

YEAR(S)

EVENT

DESCRIPTION

Prior to	Pre-colonial Period	Prior to prolonged European contact, diverse tribal groups lived in the
1492		Americas and spoke well over 500 languages. Native people had varied
		economies and a wide range of life ways, from sedentary, agrarian
		societies to semi-nomadic hunter-gatherer societies. Scholars estimate
		there were 10-75 million Indigenous people prior to European contact.
1823 - 1832	Marshall Trilogy	The Marshall Trilogy is a series of Supreme Court cases that became
		the foundation for key elements of federal Indian law policy, including
		the trust relationship. In the case of Cherokee Nation v. Georgia (1831),
		where the Cherokee Nation was trying to stop the removal of the Nation
		from Georgia, the Court held that Indians were not foreign nations, but
		“domestic dependent nations” – small nations that have accepted the
		protection of a larger nation, yet still retain their sovereignty. It referred
		to a “guardian/ward relationship”: U.S. holds all land and resources in
		trust for the Indians, creating a fiduciary duty.
1824	Bureau of Indian	First called the Office of Indian Affairs, the agency was created in 1824
	Affairs (BIA) is	as a division within the War Department to oversee treaty negotiations,
	created	manage Indian schools, and administer Indian trade, as well as handle all
		expenditures and correspondence concerning Indian affairs.
1830	Indian Removal Act	Congress passed the Indian Removal Act, authorizing the president
	passed	to pursue ownership of all Indian lands east of the Mississippi River.
		Under the Act, Native people were compensated with new (and in most
		cases, less desirable) lands drawn from the public domain west of the
		Mississippi River.
1867	Alaska Purchased	Through a treaty between the Russian Empire and the United States on
	by U.S. from Russia	October 18, 1867, Alaska was formally transferred to the U.S.

YEAR(S)

EVENT

DESCRIPTION

1879 Carlisle Indian In an effort to assimilate Native children into Western ways of being,

School established boarding schools were established. The first of these boarding schools was the United States Indian Training and Industrial School at Carlisle, Pennsylvania, a boarding school founded by former Indian-fighter Captain Richard Henry Pratt. Over the next two decades, 24 more schools on the Carlisle model were established. The boarding school experience often proved traumatic to Native American children, who were forbidden to speak their Native languages, taught Christianity, and denied the right

to practice their Native religions, and in numerous other ways forced to abandon their Native American identities and adopt European-American culture. Since the twentieth century, investigations have documented cases of sexual, physical, and mental abuse occurring at such schools.

1887

General Allotment Act or the Dawes Severalty Act of 1887

Amended in 1891,

1898, and 1906

The stated objective of the Dawes Act was to stimulate assimilation of Indians into American society. Individual ownership of land was seen as an essential step. The BIA was directed to break up the tribal land base; agents surveyed reservations, divided them into individual parcels, and assigned lands to individual Indians. The agents also oversaw the sale of what were labeled “surplus” lands to white settlers. The passing of this Act paved the way for an attack on the last cultural mainstay of tribal existence — communal ownership of land and significantly reduced the Native land base.

1898

Hawaiian Islands Annexation

The United States annexed the Hawaiian Islands as a territory under protest of the Native Hawaiian people and five years after the illegal overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawaii in 1893.

1921

Hawaiian Homes Commission Act (HHCA)

United States Congress enacted the HHCA on July 9, 1921. 200,000 acres of land were set aside, in trust, for the Indigenous people of Hawaii. This Hawaiian Home Lands Trust provided a homestead lease up of to 199 years to native Hawaiians of 50% blood quantum or more. Homestead leases are for residential, agricultural, or pastoral purposes. Other benefits provided by the HHCA include financial assistance through direct loans or loan guarantees for home construction, replacement, or repair, and for the development of farms and ranches.

YEAR(S)

EVENT

DESCRIPTION

1934 Indian The IRA was the centerpiece of the “Indian New Deal.” It encouraged Reorganization Act Indians to “recover” their cultural heritage, prohibited new allotments and (IRA) signed extended the trust period for existing allotments, and sought to promote

tribal self-government by encouraging tribes to adopt constitutions and form federally chartered corporations. In order to take advantage of IRA funding, tribes were required to adopt a U.S.-style constitution.

1934	National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) founded	NCAI was formed to unify disparate tribes and self-governing organizations of American Indians and Alaska Natives to advance policy advocacy and education of the U.S. Congress to improve federal policies directed at Native populations.
1953	Relocation to Urban	In order to deal with increasing unemployment among American Indians,
	Areas	the BIA enacted a new policy to persuade large numbers of Indians
		to relocate to urban areas. Using the lure of job training and housing,
		brochures depicting Indian families leading a middle-class life were
		distributed by the BIA. While the initial response was enthusiastic, within
		five years the relocation program was considered a failure, with 50
		percent of the participants returning to their reservations.
1959	Congress Delegates	Due to the distance and geographic isolation of the Hawaiian Islands,
	Administration	Congress included a compact in the 1959 Hawaii Statehood Act to require
	of Hawaiian trust	the new state to administer the federal land trust for native Hawaiians
	lands to new State	established in 1921, with federal oversight. As such, the new state formed
	of Hawaii	the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands (DHHL) in 1961. In addition, the
		statehood act transferred 1.8 acres of “ceded” lands (former Hawaiian
		lands) to the new state, requiring the use to benefit five public purposes,
		one of which was native Hawaiians defined by the HHCA. As such, the
		state amended its constitution in 1978 and formed the Office of Hawaiian
		Affairs as a state agency to administer revenues from the ceded land trust.
1962	HUD begins	Congress allocated 1% of national housing budget for Native communities.
	providing funding	Funding was very competitive.
	for housing in
	Native communities

YEAR(S)

EVENT

DESCRIPTION

1966	Alaska Federation	AFN was organized largely in response to the Alaska land claims issue
	of Natives (AFN)	that re-emerged after Alaska statehood in 1958, when the state of Alaska
	founded	was poised to select 100 million acres of Native land. AFN has been
		instrumental in many of the policies that have affected Alaskan Natives,
		including land rights and sovereignty issues.
1971	Alaska Native	In 1971, then President Richard Nixon signed into law the ANCSA. At the
	Claims Settlement	time, this was the largest land claim settlement in United States history.
	Act (ANCSA)	With the passage of ANCSA, 12 regional Native economic development
		corporations were formed to administer the land settlement claims
		afforded by the Act.
1972	Indian Education	Landmark legislation establishing a comprehensive approach to meeting
	Act	the unique needs of American Indian and Alaska Native students.
1975	Indian Self-	The Indian Self-Determination Act authorized federal agencies to enter
	Determination Act	into contracts with and make grants directly to federally recognized tribes.
1976	Indian Health Care	The Indian Health Care Improvement Act amended the Social Security Act
	Improvement Act	to permit reimbursement by Medicare and Medicaid for services provided
		to American Indians and Alaska Natives in the Indian Health Service and
		tribal health care facilities.
1987	Sovereign Council	SCHHA was organized by Native Hawaiians eligible for the HHCA of 1921
	of Hawaiian	to unify around common challenges to implementing the HHCA for its
	Homestead	original purposes of placing Native Hawaiians on their lands, being
	Associations	administered by the State of Hawaii on behalf of the federal government,
	(SCHHA) founded	and to advance their rights to self-determination on their trust lands.
1988	Native Hawaiian	Established Native Hawaiian Health Care Systems and the Native Hawaiian
	Heath Care	Health Scholarship Program serving Native Hawaiians of any blood
	Improvement Act	quantum.
1988	Native Hawaiian	Established federal program to develop innovative educational programs,
	Education Act	and established the Native Hawaiian Education Council serving Native
		Hawaiians of any blood quantum.

YEAR(S)

EVENT

DESCRIPTION

1996	Native American	Congress enacted NAHASDA through a negotiated rule-making process,
	Housing and Self-	which determined that funding for Native communities would be based
	Determination Act	on need and allocation-based. The Act reorganized the system of housing
	(NAHASDA)	assistance provided to American Indians and Alaska Natives through HUD
		by eliminating several separate programs and replacing them with a block
		grant program.
2001	Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement (CNHA) formed	CNHA was founded to unify the many Native Hawaiian nonprofit organizations working in community development, including education, health care, housing, culture, environment, and economic development, and to advance public policy for its member organizations.
2001	Native American	Based on recommendations outlined in its 2001 Native American Lending
	CDFI Assistance	Study, the Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Fund
	Program (NACA)	of the Treasury Department developed its Native American Initiatives,
		including the NACA program. This program provides loan and grant capital
		to certified and emerging Native CDFIs serving American Indians, Alaska
		Natives, and Native Hawaiians.
2002	Title VIII of	Congress amends NAHASDA to add Title VIII to include funding to Native
	NAHASDA	Hawaiian trust lands, directing the block grant to the State of Hawaii,
		since Native Hawaiians had not yet established a housing authority.
		Serves only Native Hawaiians of 50% blood quantum.
2009	Cobell v. Salazar	A member of the Blackfeet tribe, Elouise Cobell brought a class action
	case	legal suit against the Department of the Interior, charging that the
		Department had not carried out its trust responsibility effectively and had
		severely mismanaged tribal funds. The case was settled for $3.4 billion
		in 2009, with $1.4 billion going to the plaintiffs and $2 billion allocated to
		repurchase land that was distributed under the Dawes Act and return it to
		communal tribal ownership.
2009	Homestead Housing	Beneficiaries of the Native Hawaiian HHCA and SCHHA leaders convened
	Authority Founded	and formed a dedicated nonprofit similar to Tribal Housing Authorities
		to serve the affordable housing and economic development solutions,
		entirely governed by Native Hawaiian leaders of the SCHHA.

YEAR(S)

EVENT

DESCRIPTION

2016

Hawaiian Homestead Association federally defined and codified

The Department of the Interior published and adopted a definition of the Hawaiian Homestead Association as self-governing in the Federal Code of Regulations.

2016

Native Hawaiian Self-Governance defined and codified

The Department of the Interior published and adopted federal regulations establishing the administrative process for Native Hawaiians to act on

self-determination and self-governance, like Part 83 for American Indians and Alaska Natives.

This summary of major federal policies is by no means an exhaustive chronology. It informs on the actions of the United States government in dealing with Native peoples of each of the 50 states, now known as the United States. There are three Indigenous peoples recognized by the federal government:

American Indians – 48 States

◉Federally recognized as Native peoples and governments

◉Membership determined by American Indians themselves

National Organization Dedicated to Self-Governing Tribes – NCAI

Alaska Natives – 49th State

◉Federally recognized as Native peoples and governments

◉Membership determined by Alaska Natives themselves

National Organization Dedicated to Self-Governing Organizations – AFN

Native Hawaiians – 50th State

◉Federally recognized as Native peoples under two categories:
- Native Hawaiian – Natives of any Blood Quantum
- Native Hawaiian – Natives of 50% or more blood quantum under the HHCA
◉Federal recognition of a Native Hawaiian government is yet to be determined
◉Federally defined Homestead Associations have been established

National Organization Dedicated to Self-Governing Homestead Associations – SCHHA

Now, we’ll zoom in on key elements of the history of housing in Native communities:

Housing

For many tribes, housing for tribal members means “low-rent,” affordable rental housing for low-income tribal members. Insufficient funds for low-income members and little or no available mortgage credit for moderate-income members have led to severe overcrowding and affordable housing shortages in many Native communities.

◉Since 1962, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has provided funding to Indian Housing Authorities (IHAs) in American Indian and Alaska Native communities.
◉Before NAHASDA was enacted in 1996, there were two primary sources of funding for tribal housing: 1) operations/admin and 2) development.
◉This funding assistance was restricted to low-income tribal members and could not be used to provide services to moderate-income tribal members.
◉The Low Rent and Mutual Help Programs created a prescribed development process with limited vision for creative or culturally appropriate site and housing design.
◉The federal government focused on quick fixes and built housing, which at the time, was better than what communities had, but they seldom focused on crucial resident education or housing maintenance issues.
◉Because available funding was inadequate, Indian Housing Authorities could not build enough homes to meet the housing needs of their communities, could not maintain the homes they did build, and had to disregard sustainable and traditional designs and layouts.
◉Often, the only homes available to tribal members were small box-shaped houses, often located on scattered sites or in unattractive subdivisions.
◉For tribal members who could afford to buy a home, there was virtually no homeownership market, private development, or mortgage lending available on reservation lands.
◉In this environment, moderate-income households faced difficult choices: they could buy a mobile home, try to build their home without mortgages (often with exorbitant interest), or move off the reservation.

Changes Through NAHASDA

Enacted in 1996, NAHASDA is part of a broad movement to support tribal sovereignty and community- specific decision-making. NAHASDA replaced several previous housing programs, offering tribal governments more options to expand their housing programs and create community-based homeownership opportunities. Although NAHASDA funding levels have always been too low to fully address housing shortages, they allow tribal governments to:

◉Design housing programs better suited to their members.

◉Leverage federal dollars with private funding.

◉Set aside a portion of funding for higher-income families in need of housing.

The ability to leverage government subsidies together with banks and private investment is key to building more and better homes for tribal members.

While NAHASDA is still focused on low-income households, tribes can use NAHASDA funds to leverage government-guaranteed and conventional loans for homeownership, thereby providing more housing options to members across income levels.

Moreover, by leveraging NAHASDA funding, tribes can create mortgage programs that allow households to enlarge existing homes, renovate deteriorated houses, or refinance mobile homes at reduced interest rates or for longer terms.

In addition, Tribally Designated Housing Entities (TDHEs) and programs can use up to 10% of their Indian Housing Block Grant (IHBG) funds for mid- to above-income households, but there is a process and documentation is required. Often, tribes use the money for their low-income renters, and it is difficult to determine who to assist with the 10% allocation.

In addition to seeing NAHASDA funding in the 1990’s, some tribes also began developing Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) units, which also target very low-income families. Because of LIHTC income limits, in order to occupy the unit, families must document their low-income status.

This current reality is our starting point. In this course, we’ll talk about how to move from this reality to create opportunities that provide the benefits of homeownership that we have discussed and heard about. We also want to keep in mind the concepts of home and homeownership that have been the traditions of Native nations for centuries. Providing homeownership opportunities is a strong expression of sovereignty, as tribes identify the best way to provide housing for their citizens. This often means a shift in mindset for many Native peoples, which we will discuss in the modules ahead.

As part of our overview of the history of housing and homeownership in Native communities, let’s take a look at a historical retrospective on homeownership in Indian Country, developed by the Center for Indian Country Development.

Enhancing and Implementing Homeownership Programs in Native Communities

Setting the Stage: What Does Homeownership Mean to You?

Native Concepts of Homeownership

VISIONING FOR THE FUTURE

Apply to be a group leader

Welcome Back

Enhancing and Implementing Homeownership Programs in Native Communities

Setting the Stage: What Does Homeownership Mean to You?

Native Concepts of Homeownership

VISIONING FOR THE FUTURE

Workbook Signup Solo

Apply to be a group leader

Welcome Back