Amazon.com Inc. AMZN,
said Wednesday it was launching a $ 2 billion housing capital fund to provide more than 20,000 affordable homes for families in the Puget Sound region of Washington state; Arlington, Virginia; and Nashville, Tennessee – three communities where the company has or expects to have at least 5,000 employees each in the coming years. The fund will provide loans and grants under the market to housing partners, public agencies and minority-led organizations, the company said in a statement. The first investments include $ 4381.9 million in loans and grants under the market at the Washington Housing Conservancy to maintain or create up to 1,300 affordable homes owned by Crystal House in Arlington and $ 185.5 million in loans and grants under The market for the King County Housing Authority will keep up to 1,000 affordable homes in Washington state. Shares fell 2.3% premarket but gained 70% in the last 12 months, while the S&P 500 SPX,
gained 15%.