Breaking the Fourth Wall: Week of June 16

Today we continue the weekly "Breaking the Fourth Wall" series that directs the blog's spotlight toward a particularly innovative or promising affordable housing project, luminary, or organization. 

In her recent piece on crowd funded real estate, Emily Badger profiled Fundrise, a Washington, D.C.-based initiative that serves as a "Kickstarter campaign that may improve neighborhoods." The fund essentially sells small shares of urban renewal projects to neighborhood residents and is making waves in real estate circles for its innovative approach to community development.

Image Credit: Fundriser 

A major bonus of Fundrise's crowd funding model is promoting local ownership of changes to the neighborhood. Real estate development often involves startling changes to urban landscapes. These decisions are usually made by investors who are disconnected from the neighborhood and have little stake in its trajectory. Crowd funding allows residents- even those who only have a small amount of capital to expend- to formulate pro-growth policies at a sustainable pace appropriate for the streets, corners, and squares of individual neighborhoods and not for sweeping redevelopment agendas. Without the developer middlemen, crowd funding presents the opportunity for residents to see (and be surrounded by)  the returns on their investments.

While many commentators express skepticism about the feasibility of Fundrise's future, crowd funding is an exciting alternative to the traditional development model of outside investors taking a gamble on neighborhoods in which they don't live. Whereas breakneck development often displaces longtime residents and prevents those without money from having any say in the future of the neighborhood, Fundrise's low threshold for community engagement might just lead to more inclusive and affordable neighborhoods that embrace change that puts locals first.