We all long to be home, that place where we belong, rest, create, connect with family and friends and be our most authentic selves. At BeLoved, we are creating a community of people to care, where people feel at home and be “at home” by experiencing a deep sense of belonging. And we are working to literally create home and community for people struggling in the housing crisis.
The housing crisis is striking almost every community in America. Asheville and Buncombe County are among the hardest hit places in our nation. Asheville faces significant challenges, being ranked as the second most gentrifying City in the nation, is the fifth in the nation in terms of housing costs/rent, has the highest rents in the state of NC, 72% of households in Asheville/Buncombe County have difficulty affording rent or house payment. The 2024 Point in Time Count, found 739 people experiencing homelessness, a 21 % increase over the previous year. Unsheltered homelessness doubled. Asheville is the location of one of the largest land grabs of African American owned homes, land, businesses in the Southeast through the Urban renewal policies of the 1950s and 60s. These and other policies like redlining decimated whole African American neighborhoods.
We believe that everyone deserves a home. Together, we are working to mitigate the housing crisis, build a community people can count on, and creating a national model solution of a new way home
.
Our work to create home takes on many different forms:
*Through our Beloved Village project, we are trailblazing a solution to create home and equity for our neighbors struggling in the housing crisis: elders on fixed incomes, working poor families, BIPOC families and others facing housing discrimination, disabled veterans, and workers for example.
*We also engage in prevention efforts to keep people in their homes offering resources and support.
*We work on projects that connect neighbors and neighborhoods back together to create healthy home environments where people can thrive.
*We connect with people experiencing homelessness, building supportive relationships and helping to connect people to resources, vital support, housing, jobs and opportunities.
*We advocate for just policies to address the root causes of the housing crisis, housing insecurity, and homelessness at the local, state, and national levels.
Home Impacts
105
community sponsors & partners from across the nation supporting the BeLoved Village
2000+
dedicated volunteers working to build homes
12,440
engaged in policy advocacy
7,326
served through outreach and prevention efforts
Created an award-winning national model solution to the housing crisis
Created the first-in-the-nation homeless/formerly homeless street medic team
Taught groups across the nation in our innovative ways to respond to the housing crisis