Our History

Our History: 35-plus Years of Building Wealth in the DMV

The Latino Economic Development Center (LEDC) is a trusted, Treasury-certified Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) and HUD-approved housing counseling agency that has spent more than three decades helping Latino families and underserved communities across Washington, DC, Maryland, and Virginia build stable homes, thriving businesses, and lasting wealth. 

LEDC catalyzes the economic advancement of Latinos and local communities by bridging the gap to capital and resources to achieve financial prosperity. Working families deserve the investment it takes to build wealth and advance their financial position — and for 35 years, LEDC has been the region's leading bridge between underserved communities and the capital, counseling, and opportunity they need to get there.

Founded in Crisis, Built for Community (1991) 

LEDC's history began in a moment of urgency. In May 1991, tensions between Washington's growing Latino community and local institutions reached a breaking point after a Latino man was shot by a DC police officer in Mount Pleasant. A subsequent report by the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights confirmed what community leaders already knew the barriers the community was navigating, in language access, housing, and credit. 

Out of that moment came the Latino Civil Rights Task Force — and out of the Task Force came LEDC. On July 3, 1991, community leaders founded the Latino Economic Development Corporation of Washington, DC to help Latino families build stability and prosperity through access to resources, services, and economic opportunity. LEDC was incorporated as a nonprofit inside the offices of UnidosUS (formerly the National Council of La Raza), and from day one, it emphasized collaboration and measurable impact — including its 1993 merger with the Adelante Advocacy Center. 

By the early 2000s, LEDC had earned a reputation as the District's premier Latino-serving community development organization and its most trusted bilingual housing counseling provider, laying the foundation for decades of regional growth.

Key early milestones: 

  • 1994: Helped pilot the first Latino credit union in Washington, DC (Alianza Federal Credit Union)
  • 1996: Celebrated the grand opening of the Adelante Mount Pleasant Cooperative, preserving homes for 16 families
  • 1997: Launched LEDC's first microloan program for small business owners in Mt. Pleasant and Adams Morgan
  • 2002: Became a U.S. Treasury-certified Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI)
  • 2003: Certified as an SBA and USDA intermediary lender and a HUD-approved housing counseling agency 

Expanding Opportunity Across the Region (2006–2015) 

As rising housing costs pushed Latino and immigrant families into Maryland and Virginia — and the 2008 Housing Crisis threatened homeowners, tenants, and small businesses across the region — LEDC expanded to meet them. 

  • 2006: Opened its first Maryland office, in Wheaton
  • 2007: Helped a record 100 families become first-time homeowners and launched Local First DC
  • 2008: Launched a Foreclosure Intervention Program as the housing crisis hit
  • 2009: Supported more than 5,000 families through organizing and housing preservation efforts
  • 2010: Recorded its largest lending year to date, deploying $782,000 into local small businesses
  • 2015: Opened its first Baltimore office in the wake of the Freddie Gray uprising, while supporting more than 3,000 tenants, 45 new homeowners, and over 100 small businesses regionwide 

During the foreclosure crisis alone, LEDC counselors provided more than 2,300 hours of direct assistance to over 480 homeowners between 2009 and 2010 — and 100% of the homeowners LEDC counseled through the program kept their homes. 

Scaling Regional Impact (2016–2025) 

Over the following decade, LEDC grew from a DC-based nonprofit into one of the most active CDFIs in the Washington metro region, expanding into Maryland, Virginia, Baltimore, and Puerto Rico. 

  • 2017: Merged with Empowered Women International, deepening its investment in women entrepreneurs
  • 2018: Purchased its permanent headquarters in the heart of Columbia Heights
  • 2019: Opened an office in Mayagüez, Puerto Rico — becoming the first CDFI on the island's western side — and completed a merger with A-Home in Arlington, Virginia
  • 2020: Became the region's only CDFI to serve as a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) lender during the COVID-19 pandemic, deploying $5.38 million to small businesses
  • 2020: Launched its Direct Community Investment (DCI) Department, which in its 6 years, distributed more than $130 million in public and philanthropic relief funds.
  • 2023: Received the Hugh A. Johnson Award from the Hispanic Bar Association of the District of Columbia for its commitment to equality and social justice
  • 2024: Selected by United Way of the National Capital Area to manage the Montgomery County Financial Empowerment Center
  • 2025: Partnered with Chef José Andrés' Longer Tables Fund and the Eva Longoria Foundation to launch The Flourish Collective 

By 2023, LEDC was operating at the largest scale in its history — a team of nearly 100 staff and an operational budget exceeding $50 million, with the vast majority reinvested directly into the communities it serves.