If you would have told me back in 2000 that MPC's efforts to start an employer-assisted housing program in northeastern Illinois would have led to Nevada - and more than a half dozen other states - investing millions of dollars in EAH programs, I would have said you were dreaming. But today, as I read an article in the Las Vegas Sun about a program MPC helped seed back in 2006, I'm thrilled to report that's exactly what's happened.
Several years back, MPC assisted Las Vegas' gaming union and employers - casinos - in the creation of an EAH program in Las Vegas. We helped them think through the model and testified at state legislative hearings on behalf of the value of state investments in EAH (based on Illinois' successes).
Like metropolitan Chicago, the housing market in Nevada has been hit hard by foreclosures. Recovery efforts are underway; and with the EAH program in place, some 200 families have received housing counseling and down payment assistance to seize the opportunity and take advantage of the low home sale prices. This assistance has leveraged $24.3 million in home sales throughout southern Nevada, according to today's article. It's also helping maintain some demand where there is lots of supply.
Read more - including four great profiles about people who have been helped by Las Vegas' EAH program - in today's Las Vegas Sun. Please contact me if you'd like to learn how to bring EAH to your workplace.