HUD's new Neighborhood Stabilization Program will provide emergency assistance to state and local governments to acquire and redevelop foreclosed properties that might otherwise become sources of abandonment and blight within their communities.
Last week, the federal government announced it would
allocate over $172 million to the State of Illinois , through the Illinois
Housing Development Authority, as well as several counties and larger
municipalities. These Neighborhood Stabilization Grants
provide limited resources – enough to recover just a fraction of the more than
30,000 properties that have been foreclosed upon in metropolitan
Chicago
since 2007. Local
policymakers responsible for allocating these dollars have to quickly devise
plans to complete the acquisition, rehab or demolition, and resale of those
properties within 18 months.
To make the best use of these funds, it is critical for
local leaders to create a system that allows and encourages municipalities to work
together across boundaries
and leverage
additional private and public sector support.
One proven public-private partnership model for
increasing homeownership opportunities in Illinois is employer-assisted housing.
Clearly, in addition to EAH’s ability to prevent foreclosures – thanks to
successful counseling and downpayment componenets -- EAH also can be a tool
policymakers can leverage to ensure local employees are among those purchasing
the reclaimed homes. On October 6, the National Association of Realtors will
host Bring Workers Home, an Employer-Assisted Housing
Conference in Chicago.
EAH also is
among a feature of a new home ownership incentive program to purchase priority
homes inChicago. The
Find Your Place in Chicago
campaign, spearheaded by the City of Chicago and Partnership for New
Communities, allows local employees purchasing in targeted communities to
benefit not only from their employers’ support, but also an additional $10,000
from this new initiative.
MPC’s
interjurisdictional work was featured in “Bridging Boundaries: Local mayors join forces to meet
their shared housing need,” on the cover of MPC’s
Summer 2008 Regional Connection.