From housing to acts of kindness, bankers credit their neighbors

Focused on relationship banking, community banks support local economies by addressing some of the most basic needs of their neighbors. Housing initiatives, financial literacy, child wellness and even simple acts of kindness provide avenues for community bankers to deliver their unique brand of products and services..“All small towns, we’re all facing a housing crisis, loss of population,” said Jay Burdic owner, CEO and chair of Malvern Bank, a $225 million bank that has been in his family since 1946. Malvern, Iowa, is a town of about 1,100 people about 25 miles from Omaha. To help spur housing development, “we made the decision to incentivize builders to come to our town; we decided to start offering 0 percent financing for the building of spec homes,” Burdic said.A local builder took Burdic up on his offer of 0 percent construction financing for 12 months, theoretically enough time to build and sell the house. The home purchase prices are $400,000 and up, and the subdivision has so far sold 30 of its 32 lots.Every builder the bank has met said the 0 percent interest rate was the tipping point for taking the risk of building in Malvern. While one could look at the program as a lost opportunity for interest income, Burdic looks at it differently. “I am not under pressure from shareholders,” he said. “I don’t look at the bottom line as the most important piece to my ownership of the bank. The most important thing to me is that the town is sustainable after I’m gone. To be sustainable, we have to grow, we have to get more kids into our school district, get more kids into daycare, get more people shopping on Main Street. The only way to do that is get more houses built.”. Housing focus in St. PaulAlso creatively tackling affordable housing is the Rondo Community Land Trust (Rondo CLT) whose financial partners include Sunrise Banks, Bell Bank, and Associated Bank. The land trust was created in 1993 as a way to bring economic prosperity and stabilize the Rondo neighborhood in St. Paul, Minn. “When land stays in community hands, families and businesses can thrive for generations,” said Mikeya Griffin, president and CEO of the land trust.Under the program, eligible applicants can purchase a home in Ramsey or Dakota counties with an affordability investment grant, a mortgage with a community lender, and a rehab grant that assures the integrity of the building. The homeowner then owns the home, but the land trust owns the land, making the home purchase more affordable than the rest of the market. The homeowner signs a 99-year ground lease and can then pass the home to heirs or sell the house. Upon the sale, the homeowner receives their equity and 25 percent of the appreciated value of the home.Sunrise Banks has a branch in the area. The $2.55 billion bank and CDFI got involved a few years ago when the mortgage department helped a few individuals purchase homes in a land trust, said Mary Stoick, senior vice president, director of tax credit lending. The catalyst for the two working together was some of the unique financing tools Sunrise has, including new market tax credits, which may be used in a few potential CLT projects. Sunrise recently was involved in the acquisition of a mixed-use commercial building along Selby Avenue as Rondo CLT works to stabilize that corridor. “It lets entrepreneurs lease at $7 a square foot in a $24 square foot market,” Griffin said. This project has cooperative ownership and will be a business incubator for an ecosystem Rondo is working to create that should support 38 new jobs in this community.“Unique organizations are trying to do unique things with real estate, and they need banks that are willing to think a little out of the box. They need banks that are willing to roll up their sleeves and put in some extra work,” Stoick said. “The end goal here matters more than a quick fee and quick close...you have to be patient with the process.”Kasey Kier, national community development manager at the $13 billion Bell Bank, was familiar with the land trust from her 27 years at Minnesota’s state housing finance agency. Kier met with Griffin in 2022 resulting in Bell becoming a financing partner. In addition, Bell teaches some of the financial and homebuyer education courses Rondo offers. Kier shared the story of Latasha Matlock Rivers, a new homeowner through this collaboration. “When she moved here from Mississippi, she didn’t think homeownership was possible,” Kier said. “Now she has a house that is home to three generations!”.Housing focus in St. PaulAlso creatively tackling affordable housing is the Rondo Community Land Trust (Rondo CLT) whose financial partners include Sunrise Banks, Bell Bank, and Associated Bank. The land trust was created in 1993 as a way to bring economic prosperity and stabilize the Rondo neighborhood in St. Paul, Minn. “When land stays in community hands, families and businesses can thrive for generations,” said Mikeya Griffin, president and CEO of the land trust.Under the program, eligible applicants can purchase a home in Ramsey or Dakota counties with an affordability investment grant, a mortgage with a community lender, and a rehab grant that assures the integrity of the building. The homeowner then owns the home, but the land trust owns the land, making the home purchase more affordable than the rest of the market. The homeowner signs a 99-year ground lease and can then pass the home to heirs or sell the house. Upon the sale, the homeowner receives their equity and 25 percent of the appreciated value of the home.Sunrise Banks has a branch in the area. The $2.55 billion bank and CDFI got involved a few years ago when the mortgage department helped a few individuals purchase homes in a land trust, said Mary Stoick, senior vice president, director of tax credit lending. The catalyst for the two working together was some of the unique financing tools Sunrise has, including new market tax credits, which may be used in a few potential CLT projects. Sunrise recently was involved in the acquisition of a mixed-use commercial building along Selby Avenue as Rondo CLT works to stabilize that corridor. “It lets entrepreneurs lease at $7 a square foot in a $24 square foot market,” Griffin said. This project has cooperative ownership and will be a business incubator for an ecosystem Rondo is working to create that should support 38 new jobs in this community.“Unique organizations are trying to do unique things with real estate, and they need banks that are willing to think a little out of the box. They need banks that are willing to roll up their sleeves and put in some extra work,” Stoick said. “The end goal here matters more than a quick fee and quick close...you have to be patient with the process.”Kasey Kier, national community development manager at the $13 billion Bell Bank, was familiar with the land trust from her 27 years at Minnesota’s state housing finance agency. Kier met with Griffin in 2022 resulting in Bell becoming a financing partner. In addition, Bell teaches some of the financial and homebuyer education courses Rondo offers. Kier shared the story of Latasha Matlock Rivers, a new homeowner through this collaboration. “When she moved here from Mississippi, she didn’t think homeownership was possible,” Kier said. “Now she has a house that is home to three generations!”Scams focused on the elderlyAnother concern nationwide is the prevalence of scams that target the elderly. These types of scams are a growing problem and cost $4.9 billion last year, a 43% increase year over year, according to the FBI.First National Bank of Pinckneyville is tackling this problem in its community with its quarterly BankChats. The $136 million Illinois bank, has done five of these chats since initiating them in 2024. About 20 to 40 seniors attend regularly, and the sessions on topics like scams are particularly well-attended. One such chat was called Bee Prepared where the first topic was on pollination and gardening, and the bank used the play on words to talk about check scams and rackets..At first, people were very quiet. “But once one person started sharing their story ... talked about phone calls they were getting, emails, it struck up a good conversation,” said Mary Jo Homan, president and CEO. “I think what the benefit is, it’s not just us telling them from the front about the scam. Once they start talking about scams, they feel it’s real and going on in the area.”It’s also been informative for bank employees. Homan talked about how much the staff learned about AI and how to identify it when preparing for a BankChat.The bank intends to continue the chats with key financial topics in the spring after its December Christmas party. Those who come to the chats are “very attentive and excited,” Homan said..Bank proposes screen alternativesWolf River Community Bank in Hortonville, Wis., has been busy participating in projects that get kids reading, outdoors, playing, exercising — and off screens. According to Pew Research, almost 50 percent of teens say they are online almost constantly. The Center for Disease Control says teens with higher screen use are more likely to be less physically active, get insufficient sleep, and have higher anxiety. There also is a correlation between increased screen use and lower test scores. Many adults mourn the loss of eye contact among those glued to their cellphones, both young and old.In May 2022, the Wolf Den had its grand opening, a fun new space for kids at the Hortonville library sponsored by the bank. And they continue to support the library so they can keep adding new pieces, said Lauren Moran, assistant vice president and marketing director. This year, the bank put $10,000 toward the New London, Wis., library building project. The $3.5 million project will renovate a building donated by First State Bank of New London when that bank moved into its new space around the corner.This year also saw the ribbon-cutting ceremony for Hortonville’s new splash pad and adaptive playground to which the bank donated $10,000. The playground is just across the street from the bank’s headquarters. “You could hear the kids all summer!” Moran said. “It was well received.”A few years ago, the bank helped the Hortonville Polar Bears completely overhaul their stadium with a $100,000 donation, and this year, the New London High School refurbished its weight room. That project also received $10,000 from the bank.Acts of kindnessFor its 100th anniversary, Security First Bank of North Dakota, headquartered in Mandan, wanted to do “something that felt like us” yet catered to each of the four communities in which it has branches, said Laura Sandberg, bank vice president, credit administration and marketing. So the main project of the bank’s celebration this year was on 100 acts of service for its centennial.The $278 million bank has 48 employees, and each one was given $100 to give away with no stipulations. This way, “everybody would get to do their own thing,” she said. “We’re way past 100 already.”Some of the employees chose to match the donation, and others got their families involved. Casey Barclay, a personal banker, shared the money with each of her four children. Armed with $20 each, the five of them went to the grocery store and surprised shoppers in New Salem, N.D., with cash to help pay for their groceries. Bank president T.J. Rooney chose to give his $100 to Heaven’s Helpers soup kitchen along with a match from him at the same time Sandberg and her family were donating their time. “We typically do that around the holidays, volunteer there,” Sandberg said. “My 10-year-old wants to make cards for everyone there. The last two holidays, that has been my favorite memory ... doing something as a family that’s good and not all about presents.”Other funds were put toward a high school food pantry for students, the cost of medication at a pharmacy, a large tip for a server, and paying off school lunch balances. “It’s not a huge amount on its own, but we believed that if everyone took part, these small gestures could create a ripple effect far greater than a single large donation ever could,” said Sarah Getzlaff, bank CEO.