Americans with low wealth often find the road to owning a home a troublesome journey. They may lack a credit score or a down payment. Linwood Brown, president of Generations Credit Union, $20 million assets, in Durham, North Carolina works with his membership, which is designated as low wealth—51% of the membership falls below the median income in the area.

“For members who lack a credit score, we accept alternative forms of credit—utility bill, rent verification, or just about any vendor that you make a monthly payment to,” he said. .

As to the down payment, “we work with partner organizations and individual development accounts,” said Brown. “Organizations will match deposits that individuals make.” .

One local organization, the Durham Heritage Foundation, purchases the land, and the members can buy a house that is built on the land, which makes it easier to buy a home. The typical home will cost in the range of $100,000 to $200,000..

The greatest challenge for the credit union, is “to grow our deposits fast enough to continue making loans,” said Brown. “Since a number of lenders have left the low to moderate income borrowers due to tighter credit standards, we have experienced a growth in demand for our loan products.”