Grants Will Help Local NeighborWorks Organizations Reduce Inventory of REO
Properties and Stabilize or Increase Residential Property Values
WASHINGTON--(Business Wire)--
Today NeighborWorks® America announced that it awarded a total of $1.9 million
in community stabilization grants to 38 local NeighborWorks organizations
throughout the country. Each NeighborWorks organization will use its $50,000
grant to support its community stabilization efforts, which are primarily
focused on acquiring, renovating, and selling foreclosed or vacant homes to low-
and moderate-income families. The grants will help the community-based
NeighborWorks organizations launch local housing activities designed to reduce
the inventory of bank-owned (REO) properties in their communities, reverse the
deterioration caused by foreclosures, and market their neighborhoods to
potential homebuyers.
Altogether, the NeighborWorks organization grantees and their local strategic
partners plan to purchase 2,800 housing units. After necessary improvements,
1,400 homes will be sold, 630 will become rental housing, and 322 will be sold
through lease-purchase programs. In addition, approximately 451 blighted homes
are slated for demolition. Just over 8,000 prospective homeowners will be served
through pre-purchase counseling programs expanded to address the challenges of
buying bank-owned properties.
While stabilization strategies will vary by market, many of the NeighborWorks
grantees plan to use their grants, combined with other resources, to support the
creation of new housing opportunities for renters and buyers seeking affordable,
quality housing. Most of the grantees are planning a variety of programs
designed to bring people back to homes that are foreclosed or abandoned.
* Neighborhood Finance Corporation (Des Moines, Iowa) intends to spur investment
around the properties they rehabilitate by offering affordable home improvement
loans to nearby homeowners. This strategy is designed to remind prospective
buyers and existing homeowners that the neighborhood is worth investing in.
* Housing Partnership of Northeast Florida (Jacksonville, Fla.)will acquire and
rehabilitate a 52-unit multifamily property that will serve low-income renters,
Section 8 voucher holders, and homeless families in transition. They are also
planning to acquire and sell 15 single-family properties and expand their
first-time homebuyer counseling program.
* NHS of New Haven (New Haven, Conn.) intends to strategically acquire
properties on otherwise stable residential blocks in order to "prevent
disinvestment from spreading." They also believe in making redevelopment
visible: where they can, they plan to develop clusters of properties for maximum
visual impact in order to curb any negative perceptions that may be accruing in
the community.
* NHS of Minneapolis (Minn.) plans to invest in "troubled" housing markets
nestled within commercial nodes, but still ripe for additional development due
to ongoing commercial and physical infrastructure investments.
In addition to strategies designed to attract residents back to communities
abandoned in the wake of the foreclosure crisis, green building will play a
significant role in one-third of the grantees` stabilization plans. These
include producing energy-efficient properties, using green rehab design
standards, creating alternate green space from vacant lots, and counseling
homebuyers about energy reduction strategies.
* LaCasa, Inc. (Newark, N.J.) plans to develop 27 energy-efficient properties
for resale.
* Hudson River Housing(Poughkeepsie, N.Y.) will use green techniques for
rehabilitating older buildings, and will also counsel homebuyers on the benefits
of energy conservation practices. Their goal is to trim the units` energy
consumption levels by 20%.
* St. AmbroseHousing Aid Center(Baltimore, Md.) will ensure that its
NSP-assisted rehabilitated homes will be energy efficient.
* Neighborhood Development Services (Ravenna, Ohio) plans to use green
specifications to rehabilitate and resell 30 homes in Northeastern Ohio.
Most NeighborWorks grantees will leverage their grant toward projects supported
by the federal Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP) administered by HUD. The
grantees will implement their community stabilization activities with a host of
partners, including banks, county and municipal agencies, and other nonprofit
groups. Many grantees are working with the National Community Stabilization
Trust (NCST) - a partnership co-founded by NeighborWorks America that helps
grantees acquire properties from servicers and provide supplemental financing
through one streamlined entity.
For more information about NeighborWorks America`s Community Stabilization
Program, please visit www.StableCommunities.org, or contact Erin Angell Collins,
202-220-6317.
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
235 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.
NeighborWorks America
Erin Angell Collins, 202-220-6317
ecollins@nw.org
or
Douglas Robinson, 202-220-2360
drobinson@nw.org
Copyright Business Wire 2009
