Beyond Housing Creates For-Profit Lender for
Low-Income Borrowers
November 12, 2003 -- In a move to protect
low-income families from predatory lenders, Beyond Housing/Neighborhood
Housing Services of St. Louis has created a for-profit entity,
Community Lending Corp., which it hopes to grow to $10 million
by 2007.
Community Lending Corp. already has raised $750,000 and made
three loans in excess of $37,000 for home purchases and refinancings
in Pagedale, a suburb in north St. Louis County.
Among the initial investors were The Private Bank of Brentwood,
which committed some $200,000 to the effort, the city of St. Louis’s
Affordable Housing Trust Fund, $150,000, and Neighborhood Reinvestment,
$400,000
Chris Krehmeyer, executive director of Beyond Housing/NHS, said
he hopes the fund will reach $2 million by the end of 2004.
"It is our hope," Krehmeyer said, "that by
providing a realistic and attractive alternative to families and
communities that we serve it will pre-empt the spread of predatory
lending. Our work is about relationships, and this is another
component to assist us in the transformation of families and communities."
More information on Beyond Housing is available at www.beyondhousing.org.
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