Tyler Perry is donating $2.75 million to elderly residents near his Atlanta studio to ensure they can keep their homes. Reports indicate that the success of Tyler Perry Studios is causing a rise in property values in proximity to the studio, and Perry immediately took action.
Perry, who is listed third among the world’s top 10 highest-paid entertainers by Forbes, reached out to Atlanta Mayor Andrew Dickens about offering assistance for residents on fixed incomes who could lose their homes due to climbing real estate taxes.
“Atlanta’s growth and prosperity should not come at the expense of our legacy residents—many of whom have been priced out of their homes in previous years,” said Mayor Dickens. “Tyler Perry has been engaged in our ongoing conversations around legacy resident retention, and he told me he wanted to do something to support these efforts. Thanks to his generosity, more Atlantans will be able to remain in the communities they built.”
The assistance will cover city, county, and school taxes. Perry will also cover any surplus in taxes over the next 20 years for 100 low-income older residents. The funds will be given by Invest Atlanta Partnership, the nonprofit wing of the city’s economic development authority.
After reports were released, the filmmaker and studio owner took to social media to speak on the matter and thank those involved.
“So… I knew that the success of my studio would affect all the property values around it,” Perry captioned the post. “But make no mistake, the seniors on fixed incomes around the studio will not lose their homes because of past due or rising taxes… no, sir!! We ain’t doing that to our legacy.”
He ended his post by saying, “Thank you, Mayor Dickens, and Invest Atlanta, for caring about our folks. God bless.”
Raised in Atlanta, the city he calls home, Perry has found several ways to give back to his community since finding success in the TV/film industry.
A few years ago, Perry hosted a food giveaway to feed 5,000 families in Atlanta. Before the event, his studio tweeted that they would distribute “non-perishable food items and gift cards” to 5,000 families “in need during this holiday season.” Cars began lining up for the drive-thru event the day before and were eventually handed meals by workers wearing protective equipment. The giveaway started at 8 a.m. and was out of food two hours later.
