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MortgagePoint » Your Trusted Source for Mortgage Banking and Servicing News 26 July 2024 J O U R N A L JPMORGAN CHASE EXPANDS HOMEOWNERSHIP AND WEALTH- BUILDING OPPORTUNITIES TO TACKLE HEIRS PROPERTY AND APPRAISAL REFORM J PMorgan Chase is expanding its commitment to tackle heirs property challenges across the country through a combined expansion of philanthropic capital, business invest- ments, and policy recommendations. At a convening in Atlanta with leading pol- icy experts and community partners in the housing space, the firm announced more than $9.6 million in philanthropic commitments to eight organizations across the United States working to pre- serve homeownership opportunities in Georgia, New York, Jacksonville, Florida, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and Washing- ton, D.C. This effort is part of the firm's ongoing commitment to preserving gen- erational wealth-building opportunities through homeownership for under- served communities nationwide. The grantees—a combination of community-based organizations, legal service providers, and universities, as well as Community Development Fi- nancial Institutions (CDFIs)—will focus on tackling heirs property and appraisal bias issues. Both are major contributors to the loss of wealth in underserved com- munities and disproportionately impact Black, Latino, Hispanic, low-income, and low-wealth families in both rural and urban communities. Chase Home Lending also commit- ted $3 million to the Appraisal Diversity Initiative, a nationwide effort to attract diverse new entrants into the residen- tial appraisal field through education, training, and resource support. Since the program's inception, Chase has sup- ported more than 700 scholarships with Industry Update 66 scholars now working as appraisers across the country. In Atlanta, 18 scholars are in the program and six graduates are currently working as appraisers. The Economic Consequences of Heirs Property and Appraisal Bias Heirs property, also known as a "tangled title," occurs when a homeown- er dies without a will and their property is informally inherited by multiple descendants, regardless of whether they live on the property or have paid taxes. According to national estimates, the total assessed value of properties impacted by heirs issues is estimated to be over $32 billion across 44 states and Washington, D.C. In Georgia, over $400 million in assessed property values are impacted due to heirs issues. "Safe, affordable homeownership op- portunities are foundational for creating thriving and healthy communities," said Abigail Suarez, Head of Neighborhood Development, Corporate Responsi- bility, JPMorgan Chase. "We need to be intentional about scaling solutions that address heirs' property issues and empowering people to maintain home- ownership from one generation to the next. Today's commitments are part of the firm's holistic approach to mobilizing resources and expertise to address this issue in Atlanta and communities across the country." "We're proud to see progress with our appraisal reform efforts, recognizing this is just the beginning of effecting change within the industry," said Sean Grzebin, Head of Consumer Originations and Transformation at Chase Home Lending. "We're also committed to helping more homebuyers, in Atlanta and across the country, to avoid the negative conse- quences of heirs property and preserve their generational wealth by identifying innovative business solutions." An Expanded Philanthropic Approach JPMorgan Chase also committed over $9.6 million in philanthropic capital to the following organizations to tackle heirs property challenges and appraisal bias through research, legal services, and