How Princess Mackie [Helps Others] Buy a House

(Twala Lockett-Jones (left) and Mark Jones discuss “Princess Mackie Buys a House” on the convention stage at the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Independent Mortgage Bankers conference in New Orleans in January, via Michael Tucker)

Princess Mackie has had a very busy year.  

She’s been on stage at a Mortgage Bankers Association conference in New Orleans. She’s visited schools and summer camps in multiple states. She’s been at a Juneteenth community event in Cleveland, and stocked in Little Free Libraries up and down the East Coast.  

And at each stop along the way, Princess Mackie–the eponymous protagonist of “Princess Mackie Buys a House”–encourages young people (and their families) to learn more about home ownership.  

“Princess Mackie Buys a House” was originally introduced to the MBA and its members by outgoing Chairman Mark Jones. He met the author, Twala Lockett-Jones, via a mutual connection in their shared home state of Michigan when she attended an event related to homeownership in the Kalamazoo area. 

Lockett-Jones was still in the process of writing “Princess Mackie Buys a House” but Jones was quickly compelled by her vision.  

Jones recalled that moment during his speech at last year’s Annual Convention in Philadelphia.  

“A few years back, I discovered a gem of a book, called ‘Princess Mackie Buys a House.’ It’s written by a real-estate broker in my hometown, and it tells the story of young Black girl buying a castle, teaching important lessons about setting goals and saving money in order to buy that castle. The whole book powerfully teaches lessons of financial literacy,” Jones said. 

“My company ended up buying a copy for every 4th grade student in Detroit Public Schools. The response was incredible. Children loved it–and so did their parents. We’re already seeing early signs that this single book made a difference,” Jones continued. 

Jones introduced the book to MBA employees and leadership as well, and in June 2023–to commemorate Homeownership Awareness Month–MBA launched the “Princess Mackie Buys a House” challenge, which calls on member companies to purchase copies of the book to give out in their communities.  

The challenge, with a goal for MBA and its members to distribute 10,000 copies of “Princess Mackie Buys a House” in communities across the country, is part of an effort to address racial inequities in housing and increase minority homeownership opportunities. 

“I think this book really meets a moment,” said Amber Lawrence, MBA Associate Vice President, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. She noted that while it’s a children’s book, it’s also the kind of book that a family member might read aloud to their kid–giving it the potential to educate an entire family.  

“Being able to use this as a tool to really start that awareness of the homeownership process at such an early age–and in a way that makes it palatable and makes it less scary–I think that’s really where that moment is met,” Lawrence said. 

That’s consistent with Lockett-Jones’ vision for “Princess Mackie Buys a House,” which tells the story of a young girl and her mother purchasing their first home. It outlines the process and provides a glossary of important terms.   

Lockett-Jones–who has been a licensed realtor for nearly three decades, and with other experience in the real estate industry prior to that, pointed to a few “lightbulb moments” that inspired her to write “Princess Mackie Buys a House.”  

One was a series of showings she did for a young woman, who brought her three children along to illustrate for them the homebuying process. “She said, ‘by purchasing this home, I’m breaking generational curses in my family tree,’ ” Lockett-Jones recalled.  

Lockett-Jones also pointed to conversations she had with her brother-in-law about low homeownership rates among African-Americans–he brought up the importance of education, she said.  

And, she said, striking statistics about gaps in homeownership rates, first-time homebuyer ages and relative net worth between Black and white Americans, bothered her.  

“For me personally in owning multiple homes, and helping other people own multiple homes, I just felt like it was important to start planting seeds of homeownership in the Black community, and people of color, at an earlier age,” she said.  

“Those were the reasons I felt it was so important to start educating, and not educating just at an adult level, but to start sparking those conversations in children early so that they can hear it as they grow up,” she continued. 

The book–aimed mainly at middle-grade readers–has also inspired adults, Lockett-Jones said, noting that she’s talked to someone as old as 69, who told her: “I can’t believe a little princess taught me how to buy a house.” 

The “Princess Mackie Buys a House” challenge aims to get the books circulating in the community for those purposes. Companies have taken different approaches to their efforts, and can purchase the books with or without custom company branding. The book is also available for individual sale on Amazon.  

As an example of some of the efforts sparked by the challenge, Ally Bank, Charlotte, N.C., sent employees to Freedom Schools Partner Summer Camp in Charlotte to read the book to children in attendance.  

Lennar Mortgage, Miami, through the Lennar Foundation and in partnership with Little Free Library, added Princess Mackie books to little free libraries in communities throughout the East Coast.  

Taylor Morrison Home Funding, Maitland, Fla., partnered with a local nonprofit, Re-Imagine Communities Corp., and brought copies of the book to read to students at a local elementary school in Apopka, Fla. 

And, other companies have gone to fairs, events and worked with faith-based organizations or nonprofits to distribute the books, among other efforts.  

“It’s been a way for organizations to engage their employee base to really get excited about this,” Lawrence said.  

She also noted it can provide a vehicle for community involvement and relationships for many companies. “Having the book placed at community events or home-buying workshops–it’s a tool in the toolkit that can be used to really power that interest, and also get people on strong financial footing from a very, very young age,” Lawrence said. 

What about companies that haven’t taken the plunge on the challenge yet? Well, MBA is here to help, Lawrence said.  

Lawrence noted there are so many things that companies can do–including partnering with schools, featuring the book at workshops and other unique events local to their communities. “Start with me, and we’ll walk you through it,” she said. 

As for Princess Mackie, it doesn’t seem like her schedule–or Lockett-Jones’–is going to slow down any time soon.  

Lockett-Jones has founded a nonprofit, Girls Build Kalamazoo, in significant part through proceeds from the book. The organization encourages local middle and high school students–largely Black or brown girls, Lockett-Jones said–in STEM, construction, the trades, real estate and entrepreneurship.  

That’s relevant to Princess Mackie’s next adventure too, Lockett-Jones said. As she aims to continue to inspire, the mini member of royalty will tackle “building a house” in her next literary endeavor.