Joining forces: Habitat and NeighborWorks in Michigan

NeighborWorks America recently announced that Habitat for Humanity of Michigan is now part of our network of chartered members. This is an exciting opportunity for two nationally recognized affordable housing organizations to expand services in a state that has suffered greatly in recent years.  To bring you more of the story, Alexandra Chaikin, online media project manager at NeighborWorks America, interviewed Sandra Pearson, president and CEO for Habitat for Humanity Michigan.

Sandy Pearson, president and CEO
Habitat for Humanity Michigan

What does Habitat for Humanity of Michigan do?

We serve 75 local chapters of Habitat operating in all 83 counties of Michigan. We offer families and individuals access to services like financial capability, homebuyer education and debt management. In 2009, we became a full service company offering mortgage origination, servicing and collections; and we are a licensed lender. This gives us a platform that will allow us to work with financial institutions in new ways to help them meet their goals to serve people who don’t qualify for conventional mortgage products and, ultimately, the goal for us is to provide financing for low-income people who want to buy a home, but who cannot qualify for traditional mortgages. The ability to work with financial institutions and investors in new ways to bring more capital to all that we do allows us to take families who want to be homeowners further down the path to achieving their goals.

How did you first hear about NeighborWorks America?

My first experience with NeighborWorks was when I worked at Michigan State Housing Development Housing Development Authority. When families were ready to buy a house, I helped get them financing. There were only three places that could serve nontraditional applicants with lowest incomes: Habitat for Humanity, the USDA 502 direct program and a NeighborWorks affiliate in Toledo, Ohio which had a loan pool. That program in Toledo actually inspired the statewide loan fund program I’m working to fund here in Michigan.

You went to an organization in Ohio to help people in Michigan?

I will go anywhere. I’m working with a company in California right now. If I can’t get it in Michigan, I’ll go someplace else.

What are the advantages of becoming a member of the NeighborWorks network?

This is a huge personal goal for me. One of my initial goals was becoming a chartered NeighborWorks member because we could really partner to help more families. We can refer clients to each other, provide more financing options and do more in areas like financial capability, homebuyer education and debt management.

Habitat for Humanity's Women Build program helps women
learn construction skills and build homes and communities. 

When you have Habitat for Humanity and NeighborWorks America, the two largest national affordable housing organizations, working together, the possibilities are beyond what you could imagine. It’s going to be the biggest thing I’ve ever been involved in in 20 years of affordable housing.

Can you say more about the loan fund you’re developing?

Capital is scarce these days and particularly so here in Michigan, so we’re interested in closing the gap between need and availability. Habitat for Humanity Michigan has established a structure for the Habitat for Humanity Michigan fund. The goal is a $20 million mortgage purchase loan pool, which I’m working now to get funded. We will establish a revolving loan fund that financial institutions and other capital investors may invest in to bring more capital to finance mortgages and home repairs. Funds will directly benefit individuals and bring more capital to allow affiliates to partner with more families in more ways than ever. Staffing for the loan fund is statewide which frees local staff and volunteers to focus on what they do best.  Basically the fund is tapping into a network of community development experts and private sources of funding to allow more efficiencies statewide and therefore help a greater number of people.
I’m also working on program with the state housing finance agency and a state bank to create a sort of secondary market for the loans. This will increase organization’s cash flow and their ability to relend to other families. I anticipate that the loan fund will happen by June of this year.

Who will benefit from this loan fund?

 Loans will go directly to anyone served by NeighborWorks America, Habitat for Humanity Michigan or the USDA 502 direct program. Since Habitat for Humanity Michigan serves all 88 counties of the state, the benefits essentially are open to anyone who qualifies and comes to us or to NeighborWorks America or the USDA 502 direct program. There is potential for this to expand to other states.

Any closing thoughts?

Millard Fuller, Habitat's founder said “The poor do not need charity; they need capital. A hand up and not a hand out.” In my mind, this partnership works toward that statement – a catalyst to bring capital to more people.

Providing Pathways Out of Poverty in the Grand Canyon State

This blog is part of our 35th Anniversary Celebration series, highlighting NeighborWorks member organizations which are celebrating milestone years marking either their membership in the network or their incorporation as an organization.

Reneé Bibby,
marketing coordinator,
Primavera Foundation

More than 28,000 individuals are homeless in Arizona, with 1 in 100 people homeless in Pima County and the Tucson Metropolitan Area. This is double the national average of 1 in 200.

Thirty years ago, Tucson, Arizona like the rest of the country, was experiencing a rapid rise in homelessness. To address this issue, Nancy Bissell and Gordon Packard organized a group of friends and neighbors and created the Primavera Foundation. Their initial goal was to provide for the emergency needs of those in our community who were homeless.

Currently celebrating its 30th year of providing services to the Tucson area, the Primavera Foundation has expanded with a variety of programs, to respond to the complex challenges and diverse needs of the community. Today, Primavera offers a full spectrum of programs that provide multiple affordable housing options, job training, employment opportunities, financial and homeownership education, and neighborhood revitalization. Primavera also provides specialized services for veterans while continuing to address social and economic justice issues. These programs and Primavera’s team of over 1,000 volunteers have helped to create a vibrant grassroots effort to address the underlying causes of poverty in the community.

Rosa Borbon is raising her granddaughter, Mary Rose. Rosa
served on the Las Abuelitas grandparent council, providing
crucial design input into the plans of the Las Abuelitas project.
Photo credit: Primavera Foundation

“Primavera’s job is to meet people wherever they are on their pathway out of poverty,” said Peggy Hutchison, Primavera’s chief executive officer.

A new project under construction for Primavera is Las Abuelitas. This 12-unit community is for low-income grandparents raising their grandchildren and will open in August. It will also include a community center, basketball court, a playground, private gardens within the units, and a community garden.



“Primavera’s job is to meet people wherever they are on their pathway out of poverty,” said Peggy Hutchison, Primavera’s chief executive officer.


 “We were approached by grandparents who had very unique concerns about raising their grandchildren and asked for a solution,” explains Hutchison. “Primavera decided that this was not only an opportunity to help 12 families, but a chance to empower other grandparents and revitalize the neighborhood.” 

Additionally, Primavera is still working to address the needs of individuals. One example is a program participant named Bill McNamee, an ex-offender, who was homeless and in need of employment. After a stay at the Primavera men’s shelter, McNamee moved into Primavera’s rental housing program while participating in Primavera’s workforce development program, Primavera Works. He has now secured a full-time job and is looking forward to joining Primavera’s financial and homeownership education classes. 

Bill McNamee, currently employed as a host at Waffle House,
poses with Waffle House Owner, Gabby Llovet.
Photo credit: Primavera Foundation

“Bill is a great example of how people can grow if given the right opportunity,” says Hutchison. But there are still an abundance of people to assist. Hutchison says a benefit of being a NeighborWorks America charter member is that “NeighborWorks is always willing to support progressive visions and programs.”

“The collaborative partnership that NeighborWorks brings to community development organizations throughout the network is immeasurable,” she adds.

Learn more about Primavera at http://primavera.org

Rural Gets a Welcome Spotlight in National Housing Policy Report

By David R. Dangler, director, NeighborWorks Rural Initiative

The Bipartisan Center’s Housing Commission recently released Housing America’s Future:  New Directions for National Policy.  From the introduction we learn that the report is, “the culmination of a 16-month examination of some of the key issues in housing, provides a blueprint for an entirely new system of housing finance for both the ownership and rental markets.” 

The first wave of reactions to the report have naturally focused on the recommendations to wind down Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac while re-affirming the importance of sustainable homeownership as integral to the American dream, to engage the private sector more broadly in housing finance, and to remember and include the lowest income renters when allocating increasingly scarce resources. For those working in rural housing, however, what jumped out for many of us was chapter five, “The Importance of Rural Housing."

The rural recommendations give a welcome affirmation to USDA Rural Development’s “primary responsibility” for housing rural Americans, noting “higher poverty rates and lower incomes” which add to rural housing’s affordability burdens. With all the public policy focus on consolidating federal housing programs, the commission’s clear language around keeping rural housing programs at USDA is especially welcome to many.

The report includes four rural policy recommendations: 

1.    Support and strengthen USDA’s role in rural housing.
2.    Extend the current definition of rural areas through the year 2020.
3.    Increase budget allocations to serve more households.
4.    Dedicate resources for capacity-building and technology to strengthen USDA providers

If implemented, these recommendations would dovetail neatly with NeighborWorks America’s own efforts in concert with other national intermediaries—HAC, Rural LISC and Habitat for Humanity—to strengthen the rural nonprofit service delivery system.

Starting well before the Great Recession, NeighborWorks America has consistently prioritized a national partnership between credentialed nonprofits and USDA Rural Development (RD). The thinking has been that there would be a variety of ways for an increasingly professional nonprofit infrastructure to fill in key customer service gaps that would open as RD decreased its field offices and personnel. For example, the packaging of 502 Direct loan applications for RD area offices is about to transition from a handful of pilots to a mainstreamed model for others to follow.

Given the unique interdependence of rural-serving nonprofits and USDA Rural Development, chapter five brings a welcome focus to the issue of rural housing, but as with so many blue ribbon reports, the real value will be in the degree to which the report's recommendations become policy. 

Housing Counselors a 'Flashlight' for Sandy Victims

 By Douglas Robinson, media relations manager, NeighborWorks America

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg with Senator Schumer (NY)
and HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan Photo credit: Keith Getter

Calling counseling a "flashlight for homeowners in the dark", U.S. Senator Charles Schumer (NY) underscored the value that local nonprofit housing counselors provide to homeowners recovering from Superstorm Sandy. Senator Schumer was joined by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan at a press conference held at NeighborWorks America's New York City office (See NY1 video here. Full recording viewable in Chrome, Quicktime here).

NeighborWorks America, its local affiliates and partners have helped educate and train hundreds of homeowners and contractors about remediating the effects of Sandy on homes and businesses. Some specifics include:

• Assessed 500 homes in Suffolk County Long Island for emergency repairs (Community Development Corporation of Long Island).
• Provided 180 New York City small business owners and homeowners with affordable loans (Asian Americans for Equality).
• Purchased 17 manufactured homes for displaced families in Monmouth County New Jersey (Affordable Housing Alliance).
• Assisted with emergency clean-up and distribution of supplies (Neighborhood Housing Services of New York City) that reached 170 residents.
• Created a three million dollar revolving loan pool for small businesses throughout New Jersey (New Jersey Community Capital)

NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg, NeighborWorks America Regional Dir. Deborah Boatright,  HUD NY-NJ Acting Regional Admin. Mirza Orriols, HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan Photo credit: Keith Getter

With the exception of the lender NJCC, all these groups are HUD certified and have certified housing counselors on staff that practice according to National Industry Standards. Several have added staff to work with homeowners affected by the storm.

NeighborWorks America itself is also taking direct action to help storm victims. On March 8, we released a comprehensive manual for individuals and families affected by Hurricane Sandy, "Navigating the Road to Housing Recovery." Accompanying the guide are trainings for housing counselors and members of the public.  In addition, NeighborWorks America has hosted popular trainings for contractors on how to properly conduct mold remediation.

Learn more about all that NeighborWorks America is doing to assist with Sandy recovery by visiting nw.org/sandy. You can learn more about the value of housing counselors by watching this video on foreclosure prevention.

Celebrating Those Who Work to Build Community

 This blog entry is reposted from our Leaders for Communities website.

By Sara Varela 
NeighborWorks America
Community Building and Organizing
communications specialist

At the recent NeighborWork Training Institute in Atlanta (February 18) NeighborWorks America presented the third annual National Award for Excellence in Community Building and Organizing (CB&O). We honored nine outstanding individuals who have demonstrated a commitment to the field, encourage resident leadership development, support resident led activities and help communities build social capital.

Winners included Julia King from LaCasa Inc in Indiana; Kathryn Benner and Priscila Cisneros, Cabrillo Economic Development Corporation in California; Carol Bronson, NeighborWorks Great Falls, Montana; Alexis Collins, Orlando Neighborhood Improvement Corporation in Florida; Kevin Johnson, Madison Park Development Corporation, in Boston; and Douglas Le, Belinda Yee and Johanna Contreras, Asian Americans from Equality in New York City. I am honored to work with these individuals on a regular basis and to have an opportunity to recognize their hard work.

Award winners during the ceremony (Back, left to right): Carol Bronson; Alexis Collins, Kathryn Benner, Julia King,
Kevin Johnson, Eileen Fitzgerald, Douglas Le (Front) Priscilla Cisneros, Belinda Yee, and Johanna Contreras

These outstanding practitioners are passionate about their work in encouraging and facilitating the development of local talent, so residents can lead the change they want to see in their communities. Thanks to them and to all the other CB&O practitioners in the field. Their work is very important to NeighborWorks America and the communities in which they work.

To see additional photos of the event visit our Flickr page, and watch this video from the local ABC Channel in Great Falls Montana for a piece on Carol Bronson, read the press release from Cabrillo Economic Development Corporation and this article that talks about Julia King in the local paper The Elkart Truth.