Individual Wealth Building

MODELS & BEST PRACTICES

EARN (San Francisco, CA)
www.earn.org
Since 2001,EARN has helped tens of thousands of low-wage families in the San Francisco Bay Area through matched savings accounts, checking accounts for the unbanked, and financial coaching. The EARN Research Institute evaluates the impact of EARN’s work and publishes original data, sharing lessons learned and best practices.

Capital Area Asset Building Corporation (Washington, DC)
www.caab.org
Founded in 1996, this organization successfully lobbied the government of the District of Columbia to pass an IDA program. In 2004, it received its first DC grant of $200,000 to begin offering matched savings grants to income-qualified participants. In May 2009, CAAB was awarded $40,000 from Citi Foundation to expand its financial education classes.

Community Action Project of Tulsa (Tulsa, OK)
www.captc.org
Founded in 1973, the Community Action Project of Tulsa has been a national leader in asset-based efforts. Through its Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) Campaign and free tax preparation services, CAP served more than 17,000 clients during the 2008 tax season, resulting in almost $25 million in tax refunds. CAP was also one of thirteen national sites of the American Dream Demonstration project, which tested the viability of Individual Development Accounts on a national scale.

Covenant Community Capital (Houston, TX)
www.covenantcapital.org
Covenant Community Capital Corporation (Covenant), founded in 1998, is a nonprofit organization that seeks to enhance the beauty, safety, and economic vitality of low-income communities by increasing their capacity to develop affordable housing, grow business enterprises, and build family and community assets. As of the summer of 2007, the group has over 600 people in their IDA program, and has dispersed $405,000 in match payments to 165 people who have completed the program and made investments in home ownership (118), education (36), or capitalizing a small business (11).

Foundation Communities (Austin, TX)
www.foundcom.org
This non-profit has managed an IDA program (found under "Get Financially Stable") that so far has assisted more than 179 families to fund a downpayment, college education, or small business by helping them to accumulate up to $5,400 in savings over a 3-year period ($1,800 contributed by the family with a $3,600 match).

Grand Rapids Opportunities for Women (Grand Rapids, MI)
www.growbusiness.org
Founded in 1989, GROW is a non-profit organization dedicated to assisting women in the Grand Rapids region start up their own businesses. Among their many programs is an IDA program, which matches savings on at least a 1:1 basis. All IDA program participants must also attend financial literacy classes.