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| WE CLOSED ESCROW TODAY!
Today, we’re celebrating a major milestone for housing justice in Northeast LA. After years of organizing, partnership, and deep trust, we closed escrow on our third community housing property, preserving 12 homes and protecting more than 40 longtime neighbors from displacement.
It’s proof that community-led housing isn’t just a dream—it’s a working model for keeping families rooted and building collective power.
In this issue
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| KEEPING FOUR GENERATIONS ROOTEDWe’re thrilled to share we closed escrow on our third community housing property! In partnership with Self-Help Ventures Fund, we purchased the building at 3330 Chapman Street in Glassell Park. It’s our third acquisition in just over a year—the clearest signal yet that community-led housing is not only possible, it’s working. |
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“We’re thrilled to support a model that centers community ownership and long-term affordability. It’s exciting to see this work scale.” - Alyson Sattler, Executive Director, WHH Foundation |
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| Our journey with the Chapman property began when two longtime LA Más vendor and community leaders organized with their neighbors and the LA Tenants Union to stop a cash-for-keys buyout. They reached out to LA Más, and together we shifted the outcome, ensuring lasting affordability and stability for residents, many who have been calling this place home for nearly three decades. This is community stewardship in action: 12 homes preserved for the long haul Rents held at 30–50% below market $180K per unit, all-in—no public subsidies
This win was only possible because of longstanding trust and our ability to move quickly. Our co-owner partner Self-Help Ventures Fund sourced $1.8M in financing and we mobilized a $400K low-interest loan from the WHH Foundation in less than 60 days. Big thank you to our realtor Sammy Lyon, our Community Housing Advisory Committee, and our Community Governance Committee for making it all happen. |
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| “Self-Help Ventures Fund is proud to partner with LA Más once again to acquire 3330 Chapman St.—our largest shared investment yet—reflecting the momentum of a broader movement toward equitable, community-rooted housing solutions in Northeast LA. In a market where displacement pressures run high, this project and our ongoing collaboration with the Nuestra NELA Fund demonstrates how capital can be aligned with community priorities.” - Tim Quinn, Sr. Project Manager, Self-Help Ventures Fund |
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| Our neighbors who call Chapman home
Ana Rodriguez has called Chapman her home for nearly three decades alongside four generations of her family living in two units. Ana has been nourishing our community as a vendor for many years, with her potato tostadas and nopales salad—a favorite at our meetings. She lives with her partner, three children, and mom, Monica. |
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| | “I've lived here for almost 30 years. I've raised my three children here, my mom lives with me, my grandmother lives upstairs. Glassell Park is my community. I'm so relieved to be able to continue to call this place home thanks to LA Más.” - Ana Rodriguez, Chapman Resident |
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| Monica organizes with Semillas en Lucha, a grassroots organization providing weekly food distributions to the Glassell Park community and a member of our Food Justice Collaborative. Monica served as a regular volunteer with the NELA Mercadito. Monica’s parents live in a unit upstairs and have watched their children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren grow up at Chapman for the past three decades.
Their story is just one of the many at Chapman and it’s the reason this work of preserving housing for long-time residents is essential and meaningful. |
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| LEADING WITH POWER AND LOVE
This year, we launched our Community Governance Committee (CGC), a 17-member leadership body of neighbors, vendors, and residents who guide our housing strategy, acquisitions, and overall programmatic priorities. From identifying buildings like Chapman to co-developing community benefit principles, they’re proving that democracy can be both local and transformative. |
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| “LA Más took us on the escrow journey—inspections, rehab costs, all of it. Most developers don’t do that. Now I feel equipped to tell the story of our work.”
“When I received the invitation to join the committee, I couldn’t believe it. I finally feel like I’m part of a community. We’ve been able to accomplish tangible wins in a short timespan. Families are able to stay in their homes.”
“I’ve enjoyed learning from everyone here. I participate to grow and practice new skills in my own community group.” - CGC Members |
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| Together, the CGC is reimagining what accountability, care, and community power can look like in housing justice. Next year, the CGC will grow to 20 members with the goal of having representatives from each of our community housing properties.
Meet the CGC and read their reflections |
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INVEST IN NUESTRA NELA
When artist and longtime LA Más supporter Sheila Pinkel saw we were in escrow on Chapman, she didn’t hesitate to send $1,000 to help close the deal. That’s our community in action: showing up, chipping in, and making progress.
Now we’re ready to scale that impact! Through the Nuestra NELA Fund, we’re raising another $25 million to take more properties off the market. Every contribution—whether it’s $10 or $100,000—helps prove that deeply local, trust-based housing solutions can shift what’s possible in rapidly changing neighborhoods, strengthening resident power and creating pathways for long-term stability and equity.
What the Nuestra NELA Fund helps us accomplish: Preservation of 90+ units of rent-stabilized housing Long-term housing stability for 270+ residents Prove that permanent affordability without displacement is not only possible — it’s replicable
Help us keep organizing with residents, stewarding these buildings well, and moving fast when the next opportunity comes.
Join our movement to protect and grow affordable housing in NELA. |
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| | | | Your support helps keep families rooted in Northeast LA. 🏘️
Make a tax-deductible donation to LA Más and be part of building a future where our neighbors can stay and thrive in the communities they call home. |
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| | LA Más is a community organization building collective power in Northeast Los Angeles to promote neighborhood stability and economic resilience for working class communities of color. |
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