Why I commit 5% of my gross income to social justice.
Real estate was actually a career change for me. I was an educator for over a decade, and really loved it!
When I got obsessed with real estate and started seriously considering investing in rental property and my journey to financial freedom, I thought I was “going to the dark side.”
I struggled with that a lot and was trying to find a way to stay committed to my social justice values while also making the move into real estate.
One easy way was how companies like Patagonia commit 1% of their profit, so I wanted to do something like that, but that felt too low…
So I upped it to 5% across the board. And also it’s 5% of my Gross income, not my net profit.
It’s definitely a stretch emotionally to commit that much, but it works so far!
Every time I get a commission, I put 5% into a separate bank account.
I give to organizations my community is involved in — mutual aid work, land back rematriation projects & land tax, Black-led organizations, and people who just need help paying their rent that month.
My business partner and I also give 5% of rents back to our tenants to help them buy a home.
Of course this is not enough and I also look for other ways to contribute, but committing 5% has felt like honestly a really easy way to stay in line with my values while also getting to do work I love in real estate!
What are other models you’ve seen for business to commit $$ in line with their values?
Sammy Lyon
REALTOR®️
DRE #02113227
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