These projects were assisted by union owned financial institutions. In 1934, the Hosiery Workers Union built the first housing development for low and moderate-income families in the nation that used federal aid, the Carl Mackley Apartments in Philadelphia. The AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust recently worked with the city government to renovate the project. Since 1965, the AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust and its predecessor, the Mortgage Investment Trust, have provided a vehicle for unions to pool their pension capital for solid investments in affordable housing. When HIT gets involved in a housing development project, everybody wins.
People obtain the security of sorely needed affordable housing.
Union members, through their pension funds, are getting a competitive return on their investment that will assist in their retirement security. A good example of how union pension investment can help transform a community is the El Azteca Housing Development in Laredo, Texas. This HIT financed project in the Colonias area of the Texas-Mexico border was the first low income housing project built in that community in 50 years. All of its 50 units are reserved for very low income residents in need of Section 8 assistance. Other HIT projects have similarly contributed to the revitalization of neighborhoods, provided supportive services for residents, and helped homeless families achieve self-sufficiency, with each investment earning the competitive returns associated with conventional real estate investments.