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| NeighborWorks America Announces $35 Million in Grants to Housing Nonprofits |
| NeighborWorks America is awarding $35 million to 117 NeighborWorks organizations and two NeighborWorks-affiliated capital corporations —
Community Housing Capital and NeighborWorks Capital — to rehabilitate or finance the rehabilitation of affordable housing nationwide, including smaller and rural communities with affordable housing needs.
The Capital Funding for the Rehabilitation of Affordable Housing (CFRAH) grants will enable local NeighborWorks organizations to develop or continue to fund:
- Revolving loan funds for rehabilitation lending for owner-occupied property;
- Rehab of residential rental housing currently owned by local NeighborWorks organizations;
- Rehab of residential rental housing that is newly acquired or will be acquired by local NeighborWorks organizations;
- Rehab of single family homes that will be acquired or have been recently acquired by local NeighborWorks organizations and will be sold to homeowners.
More information on these awards is in the NeighborWorks newsroom.
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| NeighborWorks and WNBA Team Up on Mortgage Fraud |
| During National Homeownership Month, the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) and NeighborWorks America teamed up to raise awareness on homeownership loan issues and fraudulent activities. NeighborWorks America hosted awareness nights in six WNBA markets in June, including Atlanta, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, San Antonio, and Washington, D.C. Experts were onsite to provide information to help homeowners protect themselves against loan modification scams, find trusted help to protect themselves against such fraud, and report illegal activity to authorities.
This partnership is part of the Loan Modification Scam Alert campaign, which was launched in October 2009. |
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| NeighborWorks America Salutes Operation Stolen Dreams for Efforts to Stamp out Home Loan Scams |
| The U.S. Department of Justice has gone after more than 1,200 criminal defendants who are responsible for more than $2.3 billion in losses and made 485 arrests in what is being touted as
the largest collective enforcement effort ever brought to bear in confronting mortgage fraud. NeighborWorks America salutes these efforts undertaken by Operation Stolen Dreams and has issued a news release in support of the government's move to stamp out home loan scams. |
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| Community Strategies represent the shared experience of NeighborWorks America and its member organizations in various topics of community development and affordable housing. |
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| The
NeighborWorks Training
Institute is dedicated to providing the highest quality training
for community development practitioners. Learn about the latest
classes and symposia on leading-edge topics. |
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| Louisiana Housing Nonprofits Fear Surge in Mortgage Defaults After the Oil Spill |
| In a recent Wall Street Journal article, housing nonprofits expressed fear that the oil spill in the Gulf may cause a surge in mortgage defaults as residents lose income and business from the ongoing crisis. Hear from
the leaders of two NeighborWorks organizations in Louisiana — Southern Mutual Help Association and Neighborhood Housing Services of New Orleans — who point to some “worrisome” signs that a new housing downturn may be added to the crisis' environmental and economic impacts. |
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| NeighborWorks America Urges Families to Declare Their Financial Independence |
| This fourth of July, NeighborWorks America urges consumers nationwide to become financially ‘fit’ and declare their financial independence in 2010.
To help families kick-start their efforts to asserting financial independence, NeighborWorks America offers several useful tips, including the availability of free financial education courses offered by more than 85 NeighborWorks affiliates across the country.View more information and tips here.
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| Citi Foundation Seeks New Ways to Empower Consumers to Make Informed Financial Choices |
| Citi Foundation President and CEO Pam Flaherty wrote an opinion piece for AOL News stating that a "fundamental change" is needed in the way consumers are helped to better manage their finances. Citing some startling research findings from the Treasury Department's first national financial capability study, Flaherty says the concept of financial education needs to be redefined. She says that financial educators need to move beyond simply increasing consumers' knowledge, to actually changing their behavior so they develop "financial capability." Read Wanted — Better Financial Literacy for more insights from Flaherty. |
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| 2010 NeighborWorks Week Focused on Revitalization and Loan Scam Awareness |
| During the 2010 NeighborWorks Week (June 5-12) NeighborWorks America and local NeighborWorks organizations held more than 320 community revitalization and 150 loan modification scam awareness events nationwide. The theme for the 27th anniversary of NeighborWorks Week was informing homeowners on how to identify, avoid and report mortgage modification scams. The educational events ranged from canvassing neighborhoods with tip sheets to holding one-on-one and group workshops about reputable mortgage modification programs. View pictures, videos and stories here. |
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| National Survey to Assess Nonprofit Housing Needs |
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Doug Dylla
Consulting is conducting research for several national funders to better understand the current and future needs of nonprofit housing organizations in this challenging economic environment. Funders are especially interested in new programs implemented to assist families recovering from foreclosure impacts. To assist in this research, Doug Dylla Consulting is asking housing nonprofits to complete a brief, 15-minute survey. NeighborWorks America is not affiliated with this study and participation by NeighborWorks organizations is voluntary. The deadline to complete the survey is July 2. |
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| NC Capital Reports Lending Results for First Half of 2010 |
NeighborWorks Capital (NC) recently reported closing a record nine loans during the first half of FY10, leveraging $55 million in construction or permanent financing (8:1 leverage) in neighborhoods across the country. Since inception, NC’s impact includes 7,350 units of affordable for-sale or rental housing and 390,000 square feet of office, retail or community space. NC is a
certified Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) that provides critical risk capital to NeighborWorks members by financing pre-development costs, acquisition of land and buildings, construction, rehabilitation, and interim operating costs.
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| NeighborWorks CEO Ken Wade Joins HUD Secretary Donovan at New England Events |
| NeighborWorks CEO Ken Wade and HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan visited New Hampshire and Maine recently to celebrate President Obama's economic stimulus and job retention/creation efforts in two key NeighborWorks organization projects. They went to Bow Highlands, a 20-unit rental townhome project developed by
CATCH Neighborhood Housing
in Bow, New Hampshire, and the grand opening of Florence House, a Housing First Model consisting of 25 efficiency apartments for chronically homeless women who are not quite ready to maintain their own apartments. Wade congratulated Secretary Donovan for his leadership and applauded the tireless efforts of
Dana Totman, president of Avesta Housing and Rosemary Heard, president of CATCH Housing. See more here. |
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| Help for Homeowners in Financial Reform |
| The financial reform legislation approved by House and Senate leaders on June 25 includes a provision which offers a remedy to the growing number of unemployed homeowners who are facing foreclosure.
The amendment, crafted by Representative Chaka Fattah of Pennsylvania, provides $1 billion to ensure homeowners who have lost their jobs don’t lapse on mortgage payments. Under the program, qualified homeowners will be able to borrow up to $50,000 to assist them with monthly payments, provided they have “a reasonable prospect” of resuming mortgage payments within 24 months.
The measure must be approved by lawmakers as part of the larger financial overhaul legislation. A final vote is expected this week. More information is available at DSNews.com.
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| USDOT, HUD Launch New Sustainable Communities Effort, Which Includes Support for Affordable Housing Near Transportation |
| U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan recently announced a groundbreaking collaborative effort designed to help foster planning for more livable, sustainable communities – places where transportation, housing and commercial development investments are coordinated to better serve the people living in those communities. The program includes
up to $75 million in funding – $35 million in TIGER (Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery) II Planning Grants and $40 million in Sustainable Community Challenge Grants for localized planning activities that ultimately lead to projects that integrate transportation, housing and economic development. Learn more on HUD's website. |
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| Early-Bird Registration for the Philadelphia Training Institute Ends July 1 |
| Early-bird registration for the Philadelphia Training Institute ends July 1. Register by July 1 to save $50 off registration with the early-bird discount! Philadelphia is sure to inspire you as you take part in some of the many courses being offered. Check out the Affordable Housing Symposium, A New Era in Affordable Housing: Investing for Impact in Sustainable Communities. Step back in time to reflect on the founding of the country as you learn the latest skills and tools to forge a stronger future. Philadelphia's NeighborWorks Training Institute will delight your senses from the local arts scene and ethnic foods to the rich history and thriving community service focus. Come for the nationally renowned training, and leave with an experience steeped in significance. Register online today |
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| E-Learning Course List Continues to Grow! |
| NeighborWorks continues to enhance and expand its e-learning course offerings, There are now eleven online courses available with the recent addition of HO104el HECM Counseling Basics, which provides an overview of reverse mortgages including HECM, counseling requirements, financial and housing alternatives and options for senior clients facing financial hardship. Four more online courses are planned to be released this year. NeighborWorks’ elearning includes courses in Construction and Production Management, Neighborhood Revitalization, Affordable Housing, Asset Management, Board Operations and Homeownership. Learn more about NeighborWorks’ online courses |
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| Harvard Study: Housing Costs Devour More Family Budgets |
A new study from Harvard University's Joint Center for Housing Studies shows that
18.6 million American households — renters and homeowners alike — spend more than half their income on housing.
Dedicating more than 30 percent of income to rent or mortgage is considered unhealthy.
The report's authors place the blame on stagnant wages. The report also says that the impact falls heaviest on lower-income people.
The Joint Center's annual State of the Nation's Housing is available here.
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