The Latest on HOME, Fair Housing, and Community Support!
FAIR HOUSING
Winter 2025-26 Newsletter
HOME HIGHLIGHTS
HOME Staff Appreciation Day!
HOME took time to pause and celebrate the talented team behind our mission. Their hard work and impact reach far beyond our office walls, strengthening communities and expanding access to housing justice across Greater Cincinnati.
HOME on La Mega
A big thank you to La Mega 97.7 FM Cincinnati and our very own Teresita Lewis for amplifying HOME’s mission and helping connect folks to critical housing support and services.
HOME celebrated MLK Jr. Day at the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, connecting with community members and sharing resources on fair housing and housing justice.
HOME has been selected as one of the nonprofit grantees supported by the Better Together Fund! We are incredibly thankful for this support, as it empowers us to continue our work of advancing fair housing in Greater Cincinnati.
This role supports grant monitoring, financial reporting, and accounting operations that power our fair housing work across Greater Cincinnati. Please send your resume and cover letter to Denese.Benn@homecincy.org with “Accounting Assistant” in the subject line.
Passionate about civil rights and ready to make an impact? Become a Fair Housing Tester! In this flexible, part-time role, you’ll support investigations into potential housing discrimination and help ensure compliance with fair housing laws. Testers play a critical role in identifying unequal treatment and advancing equitable access to housing.
Fair Housing Funding Secured in Final FY26 THUD Bill
The final FY26 THUD appropriations bill passed with bipartisan support, preserving key fair housing investments. The package includes $56M for Fair Housing Initiatives Program (FHIP), $26M for Fair Housing Assistance Program (FHAP), and $86M for HUD’s Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity (FHEO).
Senator Elizabeth Warren Holds Fair Housing Spotlight Forum
A “Fair Housing Under Fire” forum highlighted whistleblower testimony that the Trump administration and HUD leadership are undermining enforcement of fair housing and civil rights laws. Speakers warned that civil rights protections are being weakened, shared firsthand accounts of internal interference at HUD, and urged Congress and the public to push for stronger enforcement of the Fair Housing Act.
Read more about this here, and watch the full forum here
HUD Seeks to Eliminate Disparate Impact
HUD is proposing to eliminate rules that clarify how housing practices can be considered discriminatory based on their impact, even without intent, leaving it to the courts to interpret these cases under federal fair housing law. Removing this standard would create uncertainty for housing providers, lenders, and consumers, and make it significantly more difficult to understand, enforce, and address systemic housing discrimination.
The 2025 Fair Housing Trends Report, part of NFHA’s annual series, analyzes fair housing complaints filed in 2024. The data shows disability-related discrimination accounted for 54.6% of complaints, national origin complaints rose 8.45% to their highest level since 2018, and retaliation complaints more than doubled to a record high.
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) repeals the Fair Lending Rule
"FHFA’s retreat from its fair housing and fair lending responsibilities for the Enterprises and FHLBs undermines significant efforts to increase homeownership access for low- and moderate-income households in rural, urban, and suburban communitiesduring a worsening fair and affordable housing crisis." ... Read more from NFHA's statementhere
GOOD NEWS ROUNDUP
Highlighting inspiring stories and positive updates that uplift our community.
The City of Cincinnati’s Eviction Prevention Programs show effectiveness
Cincinnati’s eviction prevention programs helped 779 households and 86% avoiding “disruptive displacement” with legal representation from January 1, 2024, through June 6, 2025, according to the Stout report. This report also highlights HOME's mediation services and mediation referralsthrough CareSuite from Legal Aid, the Help Center, and UWGC, in addition to direct referrals.
City of Cincinnati Creates Housing Search Resource
The City of Cincinnati launched a new website focused on finding available and affordable rental housing. The City aims to increase transparency, streamline the housing search process, and support residents in finding safe, stable, and affordable homes.
The Center for Respite Care assists people experiencing homelessness after they've been discharged from hospitals, with nowhere to recover. With their newly purchased building, the Center's reach and impact will expand in OTR.
After a group of residents faced a large rent increase, they sought help through Greater Cincinnati Legal Aid. Through collective advocacy, they secured housing vouchers from the housing development to keep them in their homes.
Over the past five years, nearly 1,399 new affordable, income-restricted apartments were built in Cincinnati—more than double the total from the previous five-year period.
HOME’s mission is to eliminate unlawful discrimination in housing in the Greater Cincinnati area. HOME advocates and enforces housing regulations for all protected classes and promotes stable, integrated communities.
HOME Staff
Elisabeth Risch,Executive Director
LaTonya Springs, Assistant Director
Denese Benn, Director of Finance & Operations
Janet Brown,Director of Tenant Advocacy
Rebecca Griffin,Director of Education
Clementine Deck,Policy & Research Coordinator
Ayat Bell,Fair Housing Case Specialist
Teresita Lewis,Fair Housing Case Specialist
Chad Siekman,Testing Coordinator
Sarah Law,Tenant Advocate
Maya Bere,Communications Specialist
HOME Board
Harold Jones, President
Frank Bowen Jr., Vice President
Julieta Simms,Secretary
Kyria Graves,Treasurer
Shawn Jeffers
Amy Goodman
Gina Ruffin Moore
Deborah Jackson
Stephanie Moes
Michael Cureton
Val T. Davis
Lydia Morgan
Larry Pauly
Eric Barrett
Erica Parker
Shawnise Lewis
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HOME of Greater Cincinnati | 2400 Reading Rd. Suite 118 | Cincinnati, OH 45202 US
