Greenville United Way opens economic mobility center

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United Way of Greenville County will open the doors to its new Opportunity Center, a financial stability and economic mobility hub, in early 2021.

The center, a partnership with financial stability groups such as CommunityWorks, the Greenville County Human Relations Commission and United Housing Connections, will extend financial counseling and coaching, access to affordable loans, and savings programs for asset building, income support and free income tax filing through United Way’s Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program, according of a news release.

Despite the Greenville area’s growth and economic success over the past two decades, it also one of the 10 most challenging communities in the nation in which to climb out of poverty, according to the release. Those challenges are brought on by wealth inequality, soaring personal debt and other barriers to resources, and have further been impacted by the economic implications of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Almost 40% of Greenville County households do not have enough savings to replace income for three months, which often leads those facing financial hardship to turn to predatory financial practices that are unaffordable, unsafe and sometimes impossible to pay off,” Meghan Barp, president and CEO of United Way of Greenville County, said in the release. “The Opportunity Center provides a collaboration of trusted financial stability resources under one roof, a true community hub dedicated to improving economic mobility and wealth creation opportunities for people in Greenville County.”

United Way will measure the success of the center by helping beneficiaries meet financial stability through:

• Earning a livable income above $46,000 for a family of four in Greenville County
• Achieving a credit score of 620 or higher
• Owning a checking or savings account
• Lowering debt to below 40% of monthly income
• Establishing savings equal to three months of living expenses
• Setting aside an emergency savings of $1,000

“The Opportunity Center helps people right now affected by the economic downturn by providing financial assistance to help pay for basic necessities, but it also opens the door to important conversations about long term solutions, such as how to open a bank account, create a savings pattern and build economic pathways to success,” Deborah McKetty, senior vice president for United Way’s Community Impact division, said in the news release. “We are excited to be able to provide the community with this critical new service.”

United Ways across the country and South Carolina, including the United Way of the Piedmont and Trident United Way, are also implementing the opportunity center model to help address economic mobility, according to the release.

In Greenville County, donations from Bank of America, TD Bank, Wells Fargo and numerous individuals helped facilitate United Way’s matching saving programs used to assist families with home down payment assistance, small loan support, avoiding predatory lending strategies and guidance on acquiring capital purchases, according to the news release.

“Improving access to trusted banking services is an important step in the journey to financial stability and TD Bank is proud to unite with fellow banking institutions in our support of this effort through the Opportunity Center,” David Lominack, South Carolina market president for TD Bank and a United Way volunteer, said in the news release.

Once open, the Opportunity Center will open Monday through Thursday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at 101 Antrim Drive in Greenville. Interested participants can call 864-382-3325 to make an appointment.