Supporting the Communities That Support Us

The Memphis Area CRA works with low- and moderate-income individuals and small business owners who live and work in Memphis and Shelby County. By equipping people with information we work to shift Memphians’ situations from poverty to acceptance, acceptance to growth.

Because Communities Matter

  • COMMUNITY INVESTOR: Neighborhoods

    The Community Reinvestment Act, signed into law in 1977 as part of the federal Housing and Community Development Act, encourages commercial banks and savings associations to help meet the needs of borrowers in all segments of their communities, including low- and moderate-income neighborhoods.

  • COMMUNITY LIFTER: People

    Everyone in our community deserves a place to call home. A refuge--place of security, safety and peace, no matter where that may be.

    At Memphis Area CRA, we focus on facilitating affordable housing, collaborating with other local businesses and nonprofits, and hosting community activities to help low- and moderate-income individuals improve their credit, increase their financial knowledge and ultimately get into a home. Our goal is to do that, one community member at a time, to revitalize or stabilize low-and moderate-income areas in Memphis and Shelby County.

  • COMMUNITY COLLABORATOR: Businesses & Groups

    We all need a helping hand at one time or another. Memphis Area CRA is that lift up. As a business and banking collective, we work with community partners, like neighborhood associations, nonprofits and small businesses, particularly in low- to moderate-income areas, to increase financial literacy. More specifically, we focus on how the Community Reinvestment Act can benefit and strengthen local businesses and community development programs that, in turn, benefit the local area and its residents.

How We Work

  • OUTREACH

    Offering free community events, like Better Credit, Better Communities, to provide direct access to community organizations, neighborhood development corporations and financial institutions that have information and resources to help people improve credit scores and financial knowledge.

  • COLLABORATION

    Working with local nonprofits and community development organizations—like Frayser Community Development Corp and United Housing—to help convert renters into homeowners and provide home rehab education, groups like Operation HOPE to provide one-on-one financial coaching

  • GROWTH

    Inviting non-members to see our progress in action by inviting them to meetings, educating them on the importance of their participation to the community and sharing knowledge about Community Reinvestment Act regulations .