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Phoenix Leaders Gather to Discuss 'Emerging Crisis'
of Affordable Housing; Neighborhood Reinvestment Spokesperson Offers
National Perspective
An estimated 27 percent of Arizona households
spend more than 30 percent of their income on housing, and Phoenix
civic leaders are seeking to address the lack of affordable housing,
according to an article in The Arizona Republic. Michael
Collins, an analyst with Neighborhood Reinvestment, said stable
housing affects everything from children's grades in school to workforce
stability and that affordable homes contribute to stronger families,
more participating in community organizations and greater self-esteem
among homeowners; "We've put homeownership up on a pedestal,"
he said. "It's the American Dream." View
article.
DHIC Wins National Award for Special Needs Housing
Downtown Housing Improvement Corporation (DHIC), a NeighborWorks
organization in Raleigh, North Carolina, recently received the Charles
L. Edson Award for Excellence from the Affordable Housing Tax Credit
Coalition. The award-winning property, Lennox Chase Apartments,
is Wake County, North Carolina's first permanent supportive rental
housing community for homeless and very low-income single adults.
The 37-unit studio apartment community was developed by DHIC, which
offers supportive services to residents on-site and coordinates
follow-up services provided by sponsor agencies. DHIC received a
$5,000 cash award for its winning entry. Support for this project
came from Neighborhood Reinvestment, equity investor Enterprise
Social Investment Corporation, the city of Raleigh, Wake County,
Bank of America, and the Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta. More
information.
A Home of Her Own: PBS Show Interviews National
NeighborWorks Association
President for Story on Single Women and Homeownership
The national NeighborWorks network and MANNA, a Washington,
D.C., NeighborWorks organization, were featured last week on the
nationally syndicated PBS show To the Contrary, which examined
the barriers faced by single mothers in attaining homeownership. Martina
Guilfoil, president of the National NeighborWorks Association, cited
three reasons for the lower homeownership rates among single women.
View
article.
Emerging Leaders Fellowship Recipients Announced
Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation announced the 2004
Emerging Leaders Fellowship recipients: Amy Chung and Marc Diaz.
View
press release.
Rural NeighborWorks Organization Taps City Housing
Funds
Self-Help Enterprises, a Visalia, California
developer of rural homes built with families' "sweat equity,"
is working in Fresno for the first time in 30 years, reported the
Fresno Bee. Because federal funding that supports self-help
housing in rural areas is not available in Fresno, the city's assistance
has been crucial. The city provided about $850,000 to pay for infrastructure
for Harvest Acres, a 21-home development that is expected to receive
its first families this month. The city is also providing about
$1.2 million for Little Long Cheng, a 41-home development that is
geared toward, but not limited to, Hmong families. View
article.
Southwest Minnesota Housing Partnership Joins
NeighborWorks Network
The Southwest Minnesota Housing Partnership recently became
a chartered member of the NeighborWorks network of community development
organizations. View
article.
Ford Foundation
Report Applauds Efforts of the Unity Council
Oakland's ethnically diverse Fruitvale neighborhood
is coming back to life in a big way. A recent Ford Foundation report
credits NeighborWorks member Unity Council, and its venerable leader,
Arabella Martínez. View
article.
Financial Literacy, Homeownership
Effort Targets Hmong in Minneapolis
A new initiative designed to help more Hmong-speaking families
in the Twin Cities area become homeowners was announced today by
a new coalition including Community Neighborhood Housing Services,
Wells Fargo Home Mortgage, Aurora-St. Anthony's Neighborhood Association,
the Family Housing Fund, the Minnesota Housing Finance Agency, and
Freddie Mac. View
article.
Community Housing Works Earns ‘Best of
Best’ Award for Smart Growth Affordable Housing Complex
Community Housing Works, a San Diego area NeighborWorks
organization, recently won the San Diego Housing Federation's Best
of the Best Award for its new Hillside Village project. Abdi Abdul,
resident manager at Bandar Salaam, another Community Housing Works
property, was also honored as Best Resident Manager by the Federation.
View
article.
AHC Receives Tax Credits, Citibank Grant
AHC, a Virginia NeighborWorks organization, received
final approval for $1.7 million in tax credits from the Virginia
Housing Development Authority for Harvey Hall Apartments, The Oaks
at Triangle, and Woodbury North Apartments. The tax credits could
yield $14 to $16 million in equity investment for the three properties.
AHC also received $20,000 from Citibank at a community picnic. Citibank,
which is opening a new branch in AHC's service area, co-sponsored
the event with Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation in celebration
of National NeighborWorks Week.
NCC Funds MHA of Greater Hartford Multifamily Project
Mutual Housing Association of Greater Hartford,
a NeighborWorks member in Hartford, Connecticut, received a $150,000
predevelopment loan from Neighborhood Capital Corporation for 24
units of affordable multifamily housing.
Winners of Prize Drawing
for Program of Study Online Testing Announced
Congratulations
to the winners of the prize drawing for those who took Program of
Study online tests between May 2 and 28, 2004! The Grand Prize,
a Training Institute scholarship for a future Institute of the winner's
choice, was awarded to Shay Meinzer, Housing and Neighborhood Development
Service (Erie, Pa). This will cover airfare, lodging and full tuition
for five days of courses at an upcoming NeighborWorks Training Institute.
Three first prize winners will each receive a NeighborWorks Training
Institute t-shirt. Winners are: Jim Rink, NHS of LaGrange (LaGrange,
Ga), Inc.; Jeff Davis, Montgomery Housing Partnership (Wheaton,
Md); and Jerry Thornburg, Community Development (Muncie, Ind).
More than 100 people took tests online, which demonstrates the success
of the program.
Online testing will be available at the NeighborWorks Training Institute
in Washington, D.C., for select courses. Please encourage your colleagues
and friends to try taking their tests online too.
View
more information about online testing.
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Tracking HOME Programs
Made Easier on New HUD Web Page
Practitioners
can now access detailed performance information for any of
roughly 680 HOME participating jurisdictions. For comparison
purposes, grantees are ranked among other localities in their
state as well as nationally on factors such as leveraging
and occupancy rates. This information is an excellent tool
for concerned citizens and interest groups. Visit
HUD Web page.
U.S.
Senate Conducts Fair Credit Reporting Act Hearings
Treasury Secretary John W. Snow and Fannie
Mae Foundation CEO Stacey D. Stewart testified on the administration's
proposal to change the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). Snow
told the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
that uniform FCRA national standards have led to a "democratization
of credit" that "has especially benefited minority and lower
income families." Stewart said that barriers to homeownership
extend "beyond fair credit reporting" to "the information
deficit that remains the most formidable barrier to financial
literacy."
HUD:
$161 Million for First-Time Home Buyers
Thousands of low-income families will be
able to purchase their first home because of $161.5 million
in funding announced today by Housing and Urban Development
Secretary Alphonso Jackson. The funding will be allocated
to more than 400 state and local governments this year and
will help first-time homebuyers overcome the single greatest
obstacle to homeownership -- the down payment and closing
costs. View
news release.
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HUD/Assisted
Living Conversion (ALCP) Grant, Deadline: July 22, 2004
Assisted living facilities (ALFs) are designed
to accommodate elderly persons and people with disabilities
who need certain support services (such as assistance with
eating, bathing, grooming, dressing, and home management activities).
More
information.
Kellogg
Foundation Grants for Rural Entrepreneurship, Deadline: August
13
The Kellogg Foundation will award four
grants of up to $2 million each to four "rural regional
entrepreneurship development systems." Grants will be
used to promote entrepreneurial activity in their region,
produce entrepreneurial models for other communities, leverage
significant investment, and stimulate national and state interest
in rural entrepreneurship policies and strategies. View
more information.
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Advanced Practitioner
Program Offering: Multifamily Bond Transactions Course
Apply your hands-on knowledge to a formal review of bond transactions
when Neighborhood Reinvestment presents“Advanced Issues
in Multifamily Bond Transactions.” The course will be
offered September 28-29, 2004, in Chicago. By the end of the
course, participants will be able to access a wider range
of choices in each bond deal; use templates to analyze those
choices; compare the advantages and disadvantages of different
types of bonds and credit enhancements; and understand the
particular issues posed by preservation and refunding deals.
Participants are required to have conducted at least two bond
deals. A limited number of $500 scholarships will be available
on a first-come, first-served basis. Application deadline:
August 20.
Download
Course Brochure [PDF]
Download
Course Application [PDF]
The
Nonprofit Housing Management Specialist (NHMS) Course
This intensive, five-day survey course, offered September
15-19, 2004, and January 19-23, 2005, is the first course
in professional certification from the Consortium for Housing
and Asset Management (CHAM). This course introduces the functions,
requirements and systems of good asset management and is ideal
for:
- Property managers who know their tasks but lack a professional
framework in which to analyze and evaluate property performance.
- Community development corporation staff responsible for
management oversight and board reporting who have had little
direct property management experience.
- Directors of property management who are building new
systems
The registration
deadline for the September 15-19 course is July 28.
Download
Brochure
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The State of the Nation's
Housing 2004
The housing industry is well positioned for another strong
decade, according to the latest report from the Harvard Joint
Center For Housing Studies. Download
study. [PDF]
Community
Organizing in NeighborWorks Organizations: A Report on the
Community Organizing Pilot Program, 2001-2004
From
the very start, community organizing and resident leadership
have been instrumental to NeighborWorks organizations. This
recent report from the NeighborWorks Resident Leadership Initiative
describes results of a recent pilot to measure impact of community
organizing efforts. Download
report.
Affordable
Housing Exhibition at the National Building Museum in Washington,
D.C.
Designing
an American Asset will be on display until August 8 at
the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C. The exhibit,
co-sponsored by Neighborhood Reinvestment, surveys the history
of affordable housing in America and presents outstanding
contemporary examples of good design. The exhibition is designed
for professionals, housing developers, elected officials,
as well as the general public. The museum is also presenting
an exhibition of innovative rural homes, churches, and community
facilities through Sept. 6. "Samuel Mockbee and the Rural
Studio: Community Architecture." For details, visit www.nbm.org.
Rural
Housing Issues Chat on KnowledgePlex; Next Chat: Limited Equity
Coops
Bob
Rapoza, executive secretary of the National Rural Housing
Coalition, and Eileen Fitzgerald, senior director of housing
for the Fannie Mae Foundation, were recently online to discuss
rural housing issues. A transcript of the chat and information
on the next chat, on Limited-Equity Cooperatives, scheduled
for Wednesday, July 14 at 1 p.m. EDT, are available on www.knowledgeplex.org.
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