I drafted the NAHREP 10 four years ago as a tool for the Hispanic Wealth Project and a guide to NAHREP’s growing membership. The goal was to establish a set of principles that position the Latino community for greater prosperity and an enhanced quality of life. The NAHREP 10 has also provided NAHREP with a set of values that guide our activities as an organization. Recently, we have formalized the creation of NAHREP certified trainers to build a small army of ambassadors who will help spread the ethos of these principles to the broader community.
While it’s not yet clear what the long-term economic and societal effects of the COVID-19 pandemic will be, we know it will be profound. We also know that people who are at the top of their profession and have achieved a near debt-free status in their financial lives will emerge from this situation ready and able to take advantage of a broad array of business and financial opportunities that will undoubtedly transpire. Harsh, but nonetheless true. There will be people who thrive even more when this is all over.
Right now, we need to remain vigilant in fighting the spread of this horrible disease, but we also keep in mind that the NAHREP 10 would not be necessary if the economy always grew, real estate never had a down cycle, people never became unemployed, and life was always fair. It was created to prepare everyone for economic scenarios like the one we are currently experiencing. Now might be a good time to read and discuss these principles again; you can find them here.
The usual solutions will not solve the current housing affordability crisis. Any solution that does not begin and end with a sustainable plan to radically increase housing supply is just noise. The barriers to increasing housing supply are complex and require the crucial cooperation of both public and private sectors, and more education.
“Boomerang” was a different kind of film. It was a movie about friendship, loyalty, and romance set in NYC at a medium-sized Black-led company that sold beauty products. Boomerang had an all-black cast and a plot that had nothing to do with being Black. While that was unheard of at the time, Murphy was such a big star that it didn’t seem like a big deal.
Terms like “great, genius,” and “world-class” are overused, perhaps because they mean something different to everyone. Greatness is subjective. Some might say you must be great just to be employed in the film business or to play professional sports, but I don’t think Will Smith or LeBron James think that way. The concept of being great also requires context. You could be a great high school athlete but only an average college player.