Campaign For Home Ownership Exceeds $5 Billion

For Immediate Release
July 28, 2006
Contact: Douglas Robinson, 202-220-2360; drobinson@nw.org

NeighborWorks® Campaign for Home Ownership
Exceeds $5 Billion in Mortgage Lending

National Effort Creates More than 40,000 New Homeowners

(Washington, D.C.) – The NeighborWorks Campaign for Home Ownership (The Campaign) today announced that it has helped 40,300 families achieve the dream of homeownership and generated more than $5.39 billion in new mortgage lending between January 1, 2003 and March 31, 2006. The results announced today extend the tradition of success for the Campaign, which since 1993 has assisted more than 100,000 low- and moderate-income families become homeowners.

More than 150 NeighborWorks organizations in 46 states plus the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico are participating in the Campaign. Eighty-nine percent of households recently assisted through the Campaign are either low- or moderate-income homebuyers. Ninety-one percent of recently assisted households are first-time homebuyers.

“The NeighborWorks Campaign for Home Ownership has demonstrated that homeownership is not out of reach for low- and moderate-income families, many of whom are first-time homebuyers,” said Ken Wade, CEO of NeighborWorks America.

“We are especially proud of the $153 million direct financial contribution of NeighborWorks network organizations in creating new homeowners,” said Wade. “With financial support from NeighborWorks America and other donors our partners established revolving loan funds that helped families of modest means achieve the American dream of homeownership. Ownership will make it possible for these families to build equity, wealth and a brighter future.”

The Campaign Serves Proportionally More Minority Borrowers

The Campaign has successfully targeted minority households, which lag behind whites in homeownership. Approximately twenty-two percent of the Campaign’s recent homebuyers are African-American. Data provided by the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act indicate that only six percent of mortgage loans issued by the conventional market in 2003 (the most recent year for which data is available) served African American buyers. Similarly, 24% of the Campaign’s recent borrowers were Hispanic, as compared to 10% of loans within the conventional market in 2003.

Active in Diverse Markets

The Campaign has succeeded in creating homeowners across the country, including traditionally high-cost urban markets and rural communities. For example, the Urban Edge Housing Corporation, a NeighborWorks network member in Boston, assisted 336 new homeowners resulting in more than $101 million of mortgage lending. The average home purchased cost slightly more than $187,000 and carried an average mortgage payment of nearly $1,961. In comparison, the average dollar amount of mortgage loans issued to all Boston Metropolitan Area borrowers in 2003 was nearly $270,000 according to Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data.

Similarly, the Neighborhood Housing Services of New York made homeownership possible for more than 1,000 buyers. The homes had an average purchase price of $180,000 and an average mortgage monthly payment of about $1,800. In comparison, the average dollar amount of mortgage loans issued to all New York Metropolitan Area borrowers in 2003 was nearly $290,000 according to Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data.

In Montana, NeighborWorks network member NHS, Inc. of Great Falls helped 1,300 homebuyers resulting in a total mortgage lending investment of $124 million. The average home purchased cost slightly more than $95,000 and carried an average mortgage payment of $676. In comparison, the average dollar amount of mortgage loans issued to all Montana borrowers in 2003 was approximately $124,000 according to Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data.

More details on the loans and borrowers in The Campaign are available at http://nw.org/network/nwdata/campResults.asp

About NeighborWorks America

NeighborWorks America provides financial support, technical assistance and training for communities across the nation, including the NeighborWorks network – a nationwide network of more than 240 community development organizations working in more than 4,400 urban, suburban and rural communities across America. These organizations engage in revitalization strategies that strengthen communities and transform lives. In the last five years alone, NeighborWorks organizations have generated more than $10 billion in reinvestment and helped more than 780,000 families of modest means purchase or improve their homes or secure safe, decent rental or mutual housing.