News Release

November 12, 2009

Contact: Erin Angell Collins, 202-220-6317, ecollins@nw.org
Doug Robinson, 202-220-2360, drobinson@nw.org

NeighborWorks America Receives More than $4.8M in HUD Support
for Housing Counseling

Washington, DC – Today NeighborWorks America announced that it received $4,860,802 in funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which will support training and certification opportunities for thousands of counselors from HUD-approved nonprofit counseling agencies, as well as nonprofit housing counseling at local NeighborWorks organizations.

“The grants announced by Secretary Donovan provide tremendous support for the critical housing counseling and training activities being carried out by NeighborWorks America and our affiliated NeighborWorks organizations across the country,” said Jayna Bower, director of the NeighborWorks Center Homeownership Education and Counseling (NCHEC). “Homeownership education and counseling enables families to make sound financial decisions and achieve and sustain homeownership, which contributes to healthy, stable communities nationwide.”

Training and Certification

Of the more than $4,860,802 awarded, $3,240,301 will enable NCHEC and the NeighborWorks Training Institute to provide nationally-recognized training and certification to thousands of counselors so they can effectively assist families with their housing needs. NeighborWorks plans to award over 1,300 training scholarships to counselors throughout the year. This grant also includes funding that supports NCHEC in continuing to provide HECM counseling administration services nationwide, including comprehensive training, HECM Certification Exam oversight, online courses and other Web resources.

“We thank HUD and Secretary Donovan for this immense support,” said Bower. “Our ability to equip counselors around the country with the critical knowledge and skills they need to help more families understand the increasingly complicated sustainable homeownership process is greatly enhanced. ”

Training opportunities like those supported by the HUD grant funding will take place in the DC-area December 7-11, 2009 during the upcoming NeighborWorks Training Institute. Space is still available in several popular courses, including:

• HO103 Lending Basics for Homeownership Counselors;
• HO110 Introduction to Homeownership Counseling;
• HO111 Home Equity Conversion Mortgages (HECM);
• HO229 Homebuyer Education Methods: Train the Trainer;
• HO250 Homeownership Counseling Certification: Principles, Practices and Techniques Part I;
• HO321 Developing Effective Loss Mitigation Negotiation and Sales Skills; and
• HO260 Counseling Borrowers to Purchase Real Estate Owned (REO) Properties.

Visit www.nw.org/training to register for these and other courses that may still have availability, or to find more information about NeighborWorks’ training and certification programs.

Support for Housing Counseling in the Network

Also included in the $4.8 million in grant funding is $1,620,501, which will provide direct operational support to individual HUD-approved NeighborWorks organizations that provide nonprofit housing counseling in their communities. $500,000 will support HECM counseling; $1,120,501 will support comprehensive counseling. This funding will be administered to the local organizations through NeighborWorks America as a HUD Intermediary.

About NeighborWorks America

NeighborWorks America creates opportunities for people to improve their lives and strengthen their communities by providing access to homeownership and to safe and affordable rental housing. Since 1991, we have assisted nearly 1.2 million low- to moderate-income families with their housing needs. Much of our success is achieved through our support of the NeighborWorks network ― more than 230 community development organizations working in more than 4,400 urban, suburban and rural communities in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. In the last five years, NeighborWorks organizations have generated more than $15 billion in reinvestment in these communities. NeighborWorks America is the nation’s leading trainer of community development and affordable housing professionals.