Aeris Announces Release of 22 New CDFI Ratings

Aeris Ratings are released with a comprehensive financial analysis as well as reporting on impact activities and outcomes of the CDFI

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Aeris

May 14, 2020, 15:00 ET

PHILADELPHIA, May 14, 2020 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Aeris®, the rating and information service for impact investments, announced today that it issued ratings and analysis on 22 community development loan funds (CDFIs) during the first four months of 2020. Among these were two first-time ratees: Midwest Housing Development Fund and Southern Bancorp Community Partners.

CDFIs are community-based financial institutions that deliver responsible, affordable loans to low-income, low-wealth, and underserved people and communities. Over the past 30 years, CDFIs have financed

  •     small businesses that create living wage jobs and strengthen the financial security of community members,
  •     healthcare facilities and charter schools that provide critical services in underserved areas,
  •     the development of affordable and environmentally sustainable rental and ownership housing, and
  •     access to healthy food through community grocery outlets.

Especially in times of crisis, such as the Great Recession of the late 2000s and the economic depression of 2020, CDFIs play the role of economic first responders. In the current crisis, traditional investors in CDFIs such as banks and charitable foundations have been joined by a small number of non-bank corporations to support CDFIs with emergency capital to keep American communities healthy and industrious.

The following 22 CDFIs were analyzed and rated by Aeris between January 1 and April 30, 2020:

  •     Access Plus Capital (Fresno, CA) | Impact Area: Economic Security
  •     Community First Fund (Lancaster, PA) | Impact Area: Economic Security, Education, Health and Food Access, Housing
  •     Corporation for Supportive Housing (New York, NY) | Impact Area: Housing
  •     Entrepreneur Fund (Duluth, MN) | Impact Area: Economic Security
  •     Fahe (Berea, KY) | Impact Area: Housing, Economic Security, Education
  •     Florida Community Loan Fund (Orlando, FL) | Impact Area: Economic Security, Health and Food Access, Housing
  •     Genesis LA (Los Angeles, CA) | Impact Area: Economic Security, Environmental Sustainability, Housing, Education
  •     Greater Minnesota Housing Fund (Saint Paul, MN) | Impact Area: Housing
  •     Housing Partnership Network (Boston, MA) | Impact Area: Housing, Economic Development, Education
  •     Impact Development Fund (Denver, CO) | Impact Area: Housing
  •     Indianapolis Neighborhood Housing Partnership (Indianapolis, IN) | Impact Area: Housing
  •     Invest Detroit (Detroit, MI) | Impact Area: Economic Security, Housing
  •     Leviticus Fund (Tarrytown, NY) | Impact Area: Economic Security, Health and Food Access, Housing, Education
  •     Low Income Investment Fund (San Francisco, CA) | Impact Area: Economic Security, Environmental Sustainability, Health and Food Access, Housing, Education
  •     Midwest Housing Development Fund (Omaha, NE) | Impact Area: Housing
  •     MoFi (Missoula, MT) | Impact Area: Economic Security
  •     Neighborhood Housing Services of Chicago (Chicago, IL) | Impact Area: Housing
  •     NeighborWorks Columbus (Columbus, GA) | Impact Area: Housing
  •     Propel Nonprofits (Minneapolis, MN) | Impact Area: Education, Health and Food Access, Housing
  •     Renaissance Community Loan Fund (Gulfport, MS) | Impact Area: Economic Security, Education
  •     Southern Bancorp Community Partners (Little Rock, AR) | Impact Area: Economic Security, Housing
  •     True Access Capital (Wilmington, DE) | Impact Area: Economic Security

The Aeris® Rating Report provides a comprehensive analysis of the fundamental financial and management components that indicate a CDFI's capacity to manage and weather changes in its operating environment. In addition to Aeris Rating Reports, Aeris Performance Maps are available to track quarterly financial performance of rated and reporting CDFIs during these swiftly changing times. The full list of Aeris rated and reporting CDFIs can be found on Aeris' website: https://www.aerisinsight.com/fund-selector/.

About Aeris

Aeris is a rating and information service for impact investments. Aeris has established risk management standards for private community loan funds (CDFIs) and has helped strengthen the development of impact measurement and management practices in the CDFI industry. Since 2004 Aeris has issued more than 900 ratings on CDFIs, based on thorough analyses of each organization's capital structure, asset quality, earnings, liquidity, management and governance strength and practices. Aeris' analyses have been used by more than 160 investors, including financial institutions, government entities, private foundations, and wealth advisors. Contact Aeris for more information: https://www.aerisinsight.com/contact/.

SOURCE Aeris