In the early 1970 s, areas of Chicago were facing rapid racial change, exacerbated by blockbusting techniques that were common at the time. A suburb of Chicago, Oak Park, decided to fight back and implemented a number of programs that were intended to counteract such practices. Banning FOR SALE signs was one policy. There has never been a claim against the program.
Neighborhoods sometimes experience times of destabilizing change.
Racial change is only one example. Their houses can often be acquired cheaply by absentee investors who rent them. At such times, current residents become anxious about their property values and potential buyers are hesitant to invest there. The Home Value Guarantee alleviates such concerns. At the same time, the Home Value Guarantee expresses both confidence in the future of the neighborhood and its ability to accommodate change.