NeighborWorks America Receives $1.5 Million Grant from JPMorgan Chase Foundation

Mortgage Lending, Affordable Homeownership, Financial Capability and Community Stabilization Efforts to Benefit from Support

WASHINGTON, Oct. 24, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- A $1.5 million grant from the JPMorgan Chase Foundation will help NeighborWorks America substantially increase its work to help NeighborWorks network members and nonprofit community development corporations around the U.S. build stronger and sustainable mortgage lending operations, expand affordable homeownership opportunities, enhance the availability of financial capability programs and strengthen community stabilization efforts. The grant is part of a $6.3 million overall commitment to affordable housing this year from the JPMorgan Chase Foundation.

"JPMorgan Chase Foundation has been a long-time supporter of NeighborWorks America and the NeighborWorks network and this important grant underscores its commitment to community development and affordable housing," said NeighborWorks America CEO Eileen M. Fitzgerald. "This grant supports a range of programs and initiatives that will have positive long-range effects on low- and moderate-income individuals and families nationwide who receive services from strong nonprofit businesses."

"As the economy strengthens, more families are looking to buy a home," said Kevin Watters, Chief Executive Officer of Chase Mortgage Banking. "Financial education and housing counseling are important first steps in that process.  We continue to work with nonprofit partners like NeighborWorks America to help families achieve affordable and sustainable homeownership."

The support for the NeighborWorks national meeting for Chief Financial Officers is a stand-out aspect of the JPMorgan Chase Foundation's support. NeighborWorks America will host in 2014 its annual CFO convening where more than 125 finance leaders from nonprofit organizations will meet to enhance their financial management knowledge and skills in order to manage the increasingly complex financial needs of the housing field.

Among other goals, NeighborWorks America will use the support from the JPMorgan Chase Foundation to do the following:

• Help hundreds of leading nonprofits strengthen the operations and delivery systems of their rental housing, construction and lending lines of business through training, national forums and the launch of new coursework at NeighborWorks Training Institutes;
• Build capacity and promote greater homeownership sustainability and financial capability through a pilot to test new strategies in homeownership business lines, training, and a symposium on "Innovations in Creating Sustainable Homeowners" for community leaders and practitioners in August 2014.
• Advance comprehensive community development to strengthen community revitalization programs in a post-NSP environment and host a May 2014 community stabilization forum, offering peer exchange opportunities and technical assistance to organizations that have utilized HUD NSP funds and are now seeking new models to generate success.

About NeighborWorks America

For 35 years, NeighborWorks America has created opportunities for people to improve their lives and strengthen their communities by providing access to homeownership and to safe and affordable rental housing. In the last five years, NeighborWorks organizations have generated more than $19.5 billion in reinvestment in these communities. NeighborWorks America is the nation's leading trainer of community development and affordable housing professionals.

SOURCE NeighborWorks America