Capitol Heights, MD - The mother of Washington Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III urged families attending a homeownership workshop on Saturday, April 13, 2013 to live within their means focus on their dreams and never, ever give up— even when faced with adversity.

"No matter how low you start out in life or how many times you're knocked down, you can get back up again," Jacqueline Griffin told a standing-room only audience at HomeFree-USA's Keys to Success workshop sponsored by Bank America, with support from DHCD. "I know how hard it is when you're striving, when you have goals, and something happens. It's not what you go through, but how you go through it."

Griffin described how she and her husband believe in living frugal, faith-filled lives and raised their family with the same values. When her famous son hurt his knee after a Rookie of the Year season with the Redskins, she said, he turned to his parents and asked "Now what?"

"We told him, 'now comes the test for something greater,'" she said. "I know not everybody is going to be an RG3," she said, "But whatever your dreams, you have to nurture them."

Secretary Skinner joined Mr. and Mrs. Griffin and Capitol Heights Mayor Kito James at the daylong workshop in the Washington suburbs. The Griffins recently moved to the Washington region at their son's request.

HomeFree, like counseling agencies throughout Maryland, is helping prospective homeowners prepare for a strengthening economy, noted Secretary Skinner. After the collapse of the national housing market in 2007, members of the MD HOPE Counseling Network focused on foreclosure prevention. Today, counselors are helping families repair their credit, organize their finances and put themselves in position to buy the home of their dreams.

Programs such as the Maryland Mortgage Program can help families take that first step to homeownership through competitive rates and significant down payment and settlement cost assistance. Learn more.

"Buying a home may not be as far out of reach as you think," Secretary Skinner said. "And now is a great time to buy— with interest rates at, or near, historic lows and sales prices may never again be as low as they are now."

Bank of America is offering its customers a way to celebrate spring and enjoy the new season with Museums on Us.  The program is giving bank cardholders free admission to some of America’s favorite museums and cultural institutions, including The American Visionary Art Museum in Baltimore

On Saturday, April 6 and 7 simply present your Bank of America or Merrill Lynch credit or debit card along with a photo ID to gain free general admission to any participating institution. Cardholders only; guests are not eligible for free admission.

Museums on Us is designed to provide a cultural benefit to Bank of America cardholders and increase access to the arts across the United States. The program brings new audiences and increased attention to participating organizations, which range from some of the nation’s most celebrated museums to regional gems and include art, science and history museums, as well as other cultural institutions.

As part of Museums on Us, more than 150 leading U.S. cultural institutions, in 31 states across the country, welcome bank cardholders in for free on the first full weekend of each month. For more information about Museums on Us, visit: http://museums.bankofamerica.com.

On average, white families became homeowners eight years earlier than black families. Oftentimes inheritance and other financial support favored families with pre-existing wealth. With more white families able to receive family financial assistance, make larger up-front payments for home purchases, they benefited from lowered interest rates and lending costs.

As long as most of us can remember, black communities have taught and believed that a college education is the key to social and economic advancement. But according to a new research and policy brief by Brandeis University scholars, that long-held belief is only one of several factors affecting black America’s ability to build wealth.

After Brandeis University’s Institute on Assets and Policies traced 1,700 working Americans households over 25 years, the researchers found that the wealth gap between white and black families nearly tripled, increasing from $85,000 in 1984 to $236,500 in 2009. For each dollar in income increase during these years, white wealth grew $5.19 while black wealth growth amounted to 69 cents.

“Our analysis found little evidence to support common perceptions about what underlies the ability to build wealth, including the notion that personal attributes and behavioral choices are key pieces of the equation,” said the report by the Brandeis’ Institute on Assets and Social Policy (IASP). “Instead, the evidence points to policy and the configuration of both opportunities and barriers in workplaces, schools, and communities that reinforce deeply entrenched racial dynamics in how wealth is accumulated and that continue to permeate the most important spheres of everyday life.”

The report ranked the biggest drivers of America’s racial wealth gap:

1. Years of homeownership;

2. Household income;

3. Unemployment;

4. College education and

5. Inheritance/other financial  support

On average, white families became homeowners eight years earlier than black families. Oftentimes inheritance and other financial support favored families with pre-existing wealth. With more white families able to receive family financial assistance, make larger up-front payments for home purchases, they benefited from lowered interest rates and lending costs.

By contrast, black homeowners were more likely to have high-interest, risky mortgages even when income and credit scores were comparable to those of whites. As labor market instability tended to affect blacks more negatively than whites, accrued monetary assets became the vehicle to withstand the lack of income and eliminated many opportunities to invest to build wealth. As a result, black mortgage borrowers became more than twice as likely to lose their homes to foreclosure.

Brandeis also found that for white families, homeownership represents 39 percent of family wealth; but is 53 percent of black wealth. Because of historic differences in access to credit, the homeownership rate for white homeowners is also 28 percent higher than the same rate for black families.

The State of Lending in America and its Impact on U.S. Households published earlier by the Center for Responsible Lending cited similar Pew data that found from 2000-2010, black family wealth dropped 53 percent, and Hispanic families lost 66 percent. By comparison, average white household wealth dropped only 16 percent.

According to the IASP report, “The paradox is that even as homeownership has been the main avenue to building wealth for African Americans, it has also increased the wealth disparity between whites and blacks. . . Wealth in black families tends to be close to what is needed to cover emergency savings while wealth in white families is well beyond the emergency threshold and can be saved or invested more readily.”

So is a college education still a part of building wealth?

The answer is still yes. But the rising costs of college and mounting student loan debts together lead to more students – both black and white – leaving school to earn a steady income before graduation.  For black college graduates, 80 percent begin their careers with student debt. For white college grads, the corresponding debt is 64 percent.

Reflecting on these findings, Tatjana Meschede, the report’s co-author observed, “Public policies play a major role in widening the already massive racial wealth gap, and they must play a role in closing it. We should be investing in prosperity and equity. Instead we are advancing toxic inequality. A U-turn is needed.”

Charlene Crowell is a communications manager with the Center for Responsible Lending. She can be reached at: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Carrie Murray Nature Center Webinar Workshop Series

MARCH 2013 (Baltimore City)- The Carrie Murray Nature Center will be hosting a live-streaming 2-day webinar, “How to Build a Successful Small Organic Farm Business” on March   20-21, 2013 at their headquarters , 1901 Ridgetop Road 21207 inside of Leakin Park in Baltimore City.

Day 1-March 20: “You Can Farm” will empower participants with a DIY entrepreneur toolbox of practical how-to’s; from selecting your plants and animals, taking your products to market and how to build your wealth, naturally.

Day 2-March 21:  “Pastured Poultry Profits” will provide the participants with an economics insight on profits and losses of chickens versus turkey, egg-layers versus broilers, parts versus whole birds and how to calculate price margins of your products.

Each Class is $15.00; all proceeds support The Carrie Murray Nature Center. For registration visit www.carriemurraynaturecenter.org or call 410.396.0808 to reserve your seating for this exciting workshop!

“How to Build a Successful Small Organic Farm Business” is presented by: Verge Permaculture and The Friends of Carrie Murray Nature Center with host Joel Salatin of Polyface Farms.