FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 8, 2025
DANE COUNTY, WI — Own It: Building Black Wealth is proud to announce Lake Ridge Bank as the first official Agency Ambassador in its growing Ambassador Program. This milestone expands the program’s reach from individual real estate professionals to institutions, setting a new standard for business engagement in racial equity and wealth building.
As an Agency Ambassador, Lake Ridge Bank has committed to contributing to the Own It fund for every residential, new construction, and refinance closing completed monthly. This model complements the existing network of Ambassadors — realtors, lenders, and other real estate professionals who donate systematically based on personal sales—and introduces a broader, institutional level of impact.
Agency Ambassadors make systematic contributions based on real estate closings by pledging a portion of their revenue or other earnings to Own It’s down payment fund. Participation is entirely voluntary and may be ended at any time. There is no minimum contribution required—only a commitment to support Own It’s mission through business activity.
“Lake Ridge Bank’s leadership sends a clear signal,” said Sara Alvarado, Co-Founder of Own It. “Organizations in real estate, banking, and finance have a real opportunity to drive change not just in words, but in dollars. We hope others will follow Lake Ridge Bank’s lead.”
About Own It
Own It: Building Black Wealth is a transformative initiative to increase generational wealth in Black and brown communities through homeownership. Driven by Madison-area community members and professionals in the real estate, banking, and financial sectors, this private-sector collaboration offers two critical components: a financial education program and access to $19,000 down payment grants—with no payback required.
Own It: Building Black Wealth is a nonprofit organization. The down payment grants are available to select community partners: One City Schools, Centro of Dane County, and Anesis Therapy. To date, 20 families have closed on new homes and over 370 people have participated in the wealth building and homeownership education courses.
For more information about the Own It: Building Black Wealth initiative or to learn how to support Own It’s mission, visit www.ownitmadison.org and contact Sara Alvarado at 608-438-5005, [email protected].