December 9, 2008
Contacts:
Douglas Robinson, 202-220-2360, drobinson@nw.org
Erin Angell Collins,
202-220-6317, ecollins@nw.org
NeighborWorks to Host a National Forum Aimed at
Helping Nonprofits Stabilize Their Communities
Forum Addresses Action Plans for Homes Left Vacant during National Foreclosure Crisis
Washington, D.C. –NeighborWorks America will host a national forum to help government agencies and their nonprofit partners implement their community stabilization plans using federal funding that will soon be distributed to states and local communities. The forum – Put Your Action Plan to Work: How to Use HUD's Neighborhood Stabilization Program in Your Community – will take place on Thursday, December 11, 2008, at the NeighborWorks Training Institute in Washington, D.C.
The growing inventory of properties left vacant and abandoned in the wake of the national foreclosure crisis is a major challenge for our nation’s communities. As the crisis continues, it is anticipated that millions of homes will be abandoned by 2012. The Neighborhood Stabilization Program, authorized under Title III of the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008, provides $3.92 billion in CDBG funding to states and local communities to help them stabilize the areas most severely affected by foreclosure.
The special one-day forum at the NeighborWorks Training Institute features national, state, and local community stabilization experts, who will:
- Help practitioners learn how to design and successfully implement community stabilization strategies to reuse vacant and foreclosed properties;
- Provide more details about the designated uses of Neighborhood Stabilization Program funds; and,
- Share examples of innovative neighborhood stabilization strategies currently being used by peer practitioners across the country.
Before the passage of last summer’s sweeping housing legislation that authorized the Neighborhood Stabilization Program, NeighborWorks had already launched its Stable Communities program, a national, multi-faceted response to the local challenges that arise when foreclosed homes remain vacant and abandoned, including increased crime, an eroded property tax base, and widespread blight.
Local NeighborWorks organizations in cities from St. Paul to St. Louis, Phoenix to Orange, N.J. are involved in innovative stabilization programs across the nation, including the use of New Markets Tax Credits, shared equity, lease-purchase, and bulk acquisition of vacant properties from lenders and servicers.
In October, NeighborWorks launched StableCommunities.org, a new online information hub for nonprofit organizations and their public and private partners working to stabilize communities. StableCommunities.org is helping to prepare nonprofit practitioners to use the new resources while equipping them with the best tools and strategies available.
NeighborWorks also worked with Enterprise Community Partners, the Housing Partnership Network, and LISC to create the National Community Stabilization Trust, a national nonprofit organization that will connect servicers and investors holding foreclosed properties with local organizations and coalitions working to stem the decline of communities with high concentrations of vacant and abandoned foreclosed properties.
*Media: If you are interested in attending the forum, or would like more information about NeighborWorks’ community stabilization efforts, please contact Erin Angell Collins, ecollins@nw.org or 202-220-6317. *
*Practitioners: For more information about community stabilization and NeighborWorks’ efforts, please visit www.StableCommunities.org, or e-mail stablecommunities@nw.org. *
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.
