LHOME

WHY LHOME?

A working furnace. A roof that doesn’t leak. Safe electrical wiring. A bathroom that everyone in the family can use. These are the basics that make a house safe, comfortable, and possible to stay in. But for many Louisville homeowners, an essential repair like this can cost thousands of dollars that they simply don’t have sitting in savings.

An estimated 7,100 low-and middle-income Louisville families are living in homes that need repairs, and can afford a fairly priced loan, but do not have a lender willing to trust them to repay. In Louisville, Black and Hispanic families applying for home improvement financing are turned down at nearly twice the rate of white applicants.

They may simply have a lower credit score, limited credit history, or non-traditional income that disqualifies them from getting mainstream financing. Without an affordable option, many families choose between taking expensive “fast cash” financing or delay essential repairs and watch problems get worse (and more expensive).

These families deserve an equal chance to reinvest in their homes and protect the value of what they have worked for, while staying rooted in the neighborhoods they know and love. For many Black families, protecting a home means protecting much of the wealth they have built. Among Black homeowners over 62, home equity accounts for 89% of net worth.

WHO WE ARE

LHOME is a Louisville-based nonprofit community lender. We make fair, affordable loans for people who may not fit inside the traditional “box” for lenders. We look at more than credit scores to understand our applicants, and understand what they can reasonably afford. We primarily serve residents of Louisville’s West and South End neighborhoods.

For example, LHOME’s Home Repair Access Loan provides low- and moderate-income homeowners up to $24,999 for essential repairs at a 4% fixed interest rate, with up to seven years to repay. There are no application fees, no credit check fees, and no origination fees.

Since 2018, LHOME has put more than $8.4 million to work for over 475 Louisville borrowers. And because LHOME is a community loan fund, our dollars stay local. As loans are repaid, they are returned to the fund to be lent again to serve another Louisville resident.

BE A PART OF THE LOCAL SOLUTION

Donations and fundraising are essential to keeping LHOME’s loans affordable. Gifts help cover the cost of making smaller, hands-on loans so we can offer lower rates, fewer fees, and payments that families can manage.

Your Give for Good gift helps a Louisville family make the repairs they need to stay safely in the home they already own and live in... where they have built their life.

Be part of the local solution. Help Louisville families stay in the homes they own in neighborhoods they know and love.