A Tale of Two Wells Fargos in Birmingham + Chicago City Alderman Calls out Big Banks on Lack of Home Loan Lending in His Community

<p>Interesting Subject Matter Today:</p> <p><br></p> <p>First, <a href="https://www.bizjournals.com/birmingham/news/2021/02/24/wells-fargo-to-shut-down-birmingham-branch.html?ana=TRUEANTHEMTWT_BB&amp;csrc=6398&amp;taid=603b235dc0731c0001227004&amp;utm_campaign=trueAnthem%3A+Trending+Content&amp;utm_medium=trueAnthem&amp;utm_source=twitter">Wells Fargo announced a closure of one of its branches in Birmingham, AL</a>. For the first time, I noticed the closure was in an upper-middle calls or higher neighborhood. <a href="https://datausa.io/profile/geo/vestavia-hills-al#:~:text=The%205%20largest%20ethnic%20groups,and%2096.8%25%20are%20U.S.%20citizens.">Vestavia Hills has median incomes in the &gt;$100k range, median home prices in the &gt;$350k range, and is 87.7% White</a>. It's basically the opposite of everything I was ever told about Alabama.</p> <p>Buried in the story was the fact that Wells is directing customers to another branch in the well-to-do neighborhood, and it was mentioned that in the mostly Black (75%), working-class neighborhood on First Ave. in Birmingham, where median incomes are 1/4 of Vestavia Hills as well as home values, not to mention 1/2 the cost of homes in Alabama as a whole that a Wells Fargo was temporarily closed because of "Staffing issues".</p> <p>Learn why it is important for that working-class branch to be open, and why that's the reason why Wells did nothing to try to get it to reopen!</p> <p>Listen to why it's not that, and the ironic thing is that Wells Fargo will likely not reopen the Black neighborhoods bank, despite now having displaced workers from the closing branch. I talk about that, and the nature of these closures in greater detail than anyone else!</p> <p>35 minutes of unique perspective</p> <p><br></p> <p>Plus, I <a href="https://twitter.com/AldMattMartin/status/1366021912326000643">discuss Alderman Matt Martin from the city of Chicago inviting and calling out big banks on their lending in communities of color in Chicago</a>. <br> <br> <a href="https://twitter.com/bank