Latino homebuyers have increased. What learning about real estate means for the community

Ten years ago, the rate of Latino homebuyers was just 45.6 percent, but just two years ago, the rate reached 48.6 percent, a key milestone for the Latino community.

“The Latino community is growing. A lot of people like to say Latinos are a minority group, but the truth is that in Los Angeles, Southern California and California, we're actually the majority,” Chris Montes said.

Montes is a senior director for Walker & Dunlop’s Multifamily Finance team, which is based in Los Angeles. His area of expertise includes workforce housing, affordable housing and social impact investments.

In order for Latinos to increase their rate in homeownership or commercial real estate. Montes believes that it is crucial to address the affordable housing crisis in many Latino communities. “I think that's highly important, at least to me, because if you don't have a safe community to live in, if you don't have a place where there's some security and some safety there, it can be stressful. And that stress could have a tremendous impact on a variety of things, whether you're a student or a professional,” Montes said.

Montes, who comes from a Latino background, said he is passionate about elevating historically underrepresented individuals. “It's important because people do that for me, you know, and I think it's the right thing to do. Not just because I feel like I owe somebody, but because I think it's the right thing to do regardless of color. If it was a woman, if it was a Caucasian woman, a Caucasian man or a Latino man, you know, if they asked for help, I would help,” Montes said.

According to recent data, the Latino population in the United States will continue to grow faster than any other demographic, which will lead to a more impactful real estate market as well. Currently, in the real estate industry, there's only 11% of Latino realtors and only 8.9% of loan officers. Montes believes that Latino representation in the real estate or commercial real estate industry matters. “With those statistics, that just tells me that there's a cultural disconnect with their clients and their ability to represent their clients needs and cultural sensitivities,” Montes said. “If you have more people in those roles, more people in those positions, then, in theory, you should understand the culture better, be able to communicate better and help them achieve their objectives better. So, I think it helps from a client standpoint, from a variety of standpoints, to have that fair representation.”

“For me personally, being a mentor to other Latinos that may be younger than myself or even other Latinos that are in the industry that may not have as much experience as I do …it’s really important to just help them, educate them and open doors for them. Whether that's as a banker or a professional, you know, from a principal standpoint, Latinos that are invested in real estate as landlords and owners, just being a resource for them, is helpful,” Montes said. “You know, just by being a trusted voice, whether it be with a lender, a government agency or anybody else, they can help open doors or give them special treatment in some way to execute on the business plan.”

Montes has over a dozen years of experience in the commercial real estate finance industry and has an extensive understanding of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s programs. He also works closely with CREUnited, an alliance dedicated to increasing minority participation in CRE and helping grow W&D’s diverse borrower base. The commercial real estate industry currently lacks diversity, and industry leaders agree that transformation is imperative. While minorities account for over 48 percent of the U.S. renter population, according to the U.S. Census, just four percent of real estate companies are owned by women or minorities.

Not too long ago, W&D introduced CREUnited, with the overarching goal of growing assets under the management of minorities. Some of its partners include Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, Camber Creek, Greystar, Symetra, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield and more. All sectors of the industry are represented in the partnership, including private equity, institutional investors, asset owners and operators.

Montes holds a Master of Science in Management and Leadership from the Sol Price School of Public Policy at the University of Southern California (USC) and a Bachelor of Arts in Business Economics from the University of California, Irvine (UCI). Montes also serves as Vice Chairman of the Board for AdelFi Bank and serves on the Diversity and Inclusion Board Committee for USC’s Sol Price School of Public Policy.

As a Commercial Banker, it is also important for Montes to advocate for those who don’t have a significant voice in the industry. “Being an advocate for people of color in their business ultimately has an impact on their communities, and it betters the communities,” Montes said.

Not only is Montes advocating for the Latino community, his most recent work was leading the team that secured financing for the new SoLa Technology & Entrepreneurship Center in LA, a joint venture between the SoLa Foundation and Live Nation Entertainment.

Their partnership and investment will fund their second state-of-the-art youth center, which will provide fully subsidized educational and workforce training opportunities in the entertainment and technology sectors.

“I think that specific opportunity for SoLa has to do with the Crenshaw Lofts development on Crenshaw Boulevard, which is their marquee development. That property specifically on the ground level is a tech center to help kids learn about the music industry,” Montes said. At the center, they also teach kids how to sing or rap. They also teach them the business side of it and the composition side. “So there's a skill set that's being built there but quite honestly, it's an opportunity to have kids in a safe place after school,” Montes said.

Additionally, their goal is to bring the kids from the community together and make them feel safe while educating them and surrounding them with role models from the industry. “They’re the real deal. They really care about these kids and they will do everything under their power to make sure they're making an impact in that community and for the kids,” Montes said.