Todos los días del año, and especially during Hispanic Heritage Month, Dickson Realty agents Ana Hooker and Stephanie Zapata are passionate about empowering local real estate professionals in Northern Nevada and California through education and advocacy to promote sustainable Latino and Hispanic homeownership.
Empowering Hispanic and Latino Homeownership
For both women, it is deeply personal to support the real estate professionals who serve Hispanic and Latino homebuyers and sellers, helping them achieve el sueño americano de la casa propia—the American Dream of homeownership.
Hooker, whose father came to the United States with a work visa to work on a sheep ranch, was born in Orange, California, and raised in Guadalajara, Mexico. She moved back to the U.S. at 18 to pursue her education. After working her way up from a temporary staff member to management at a Fortune 500 company, she decided to change careers and begin her career in real estate.
For her, advancing sustainable Latino Hispanic homeownership is about what that achievement represents.
“It’s about empowering the Latino community with the knowledge and tools to build wealth and create a more secure future,” Hooker said.
This dedication led her to become certified in the National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals (NAHREP) 10 wealth-building disciplines through the Hispanic Wealth Project, which focuses on helping individuals, families, and communities achieve greater prosperity.
Supporting the growth of homeownership among Latino and Hispanic individuals and families also means ensuring the financial stability and prosperity of the whole economy. According to the Hispanic Wealth Project (HWP), the median net worth of Latino homeowners is more than 27 times that of renters. The connection between homeownership and wealth is especially consequential for Latinos, who hold more than half of their total wealth in real estate, according to HWP and NAHREP, of which Hooker and Zapata are board members for the newly reestablished Northern Nevada Chapter.
Zapata saw the empowering effects of homeownership first-hand as she watched her mother, an immigrant from Peru, buy her first home in Sparks, Nevada, while raising three children as a single mom.
“My mom taught me everything,” Zapata said. “Her biggest accomplishment as an immigrant to the United States was acquiring the American dream—she bought a home, and then she paid it off within 11 years.”
Her story illustrates the powerful role of family in shaping the thinking of some Hispanic and Latino individuals about homeownership and financial management.
“We are super family-oriented, and culture is very, very important,” Hooker said. “We all came here for one purpose: to provide the best we can to our families and achieve the American dream. What better way to continue that than by helping others achieve that through real estate, educating them, and being their go-to advisor to achieve that dream?”
Restarting the Hispanic Real Estate Association In Northern Nevada
As leaders of the Northern Nevada Chapter of NAHREP, both Zapata and Hooker are working with other real estate and financial professionals in the area, including Susana Alcala from Omega Mortgage Group, to ensure more Latino and Hispanic homebuyers and sellers have that go-to advisor in the region.
“NAHREP is not just for Latino or Hispanic real estate professionals, but for anyone who is working with Latino or Hispanic home buyers and sellers,” said Hooker, who was also recently honored as a 2024 Top 250 Latino Agents Award recipient by NAHREP.
Recognizing NAHREP’s mission and values, Hooker saw its potential benefits for real estate professionals in northern Nevada. Encouraged by Nancy Fennell, CEO of Dickson Realty, Hooker collaborated with fellow industry leaders to bring this opportunity to the region.
Over the next year, Hooker, Zapata, and other members of the local chapter plan to provide resources and training for real estate professionals serving Hispanic homebuyers and sellers, champion public policies aligned with NAHREP’s mission, and foster relationships among industry stakeholders, real estate practitioners, and housing professionals.
NAHREP Northern Nevada will host its first virtual meeting on Nov. 7 and invites the community to explore the advantages of becoming a member and the impact NAHERP has on real estate professionals and the people they work with to pursue a better future.
For both Hooker and Zapata, the reward of helping a Hispanic or Latino family purchase a home is more than financial. It’s emotional.
“It’s an achievement every time that I work with the Hispanic family to achieve that dream and to become homeowners,” Hooker said.
Zapata agreed.
“You see the chains that we’re holding them down fall away,” Zapata said. “It’s the best feeling because you’ve helped somebody in the long term, more than just in that transaction.”
