Alliance Pools Expertise, New Resources to 27 Highly Impacted Communities
CHICAGO, March 5 /PRNewswire/ -- Ethnic communities hardest hit by the foreclosure crisis will receive much needed resources to help preserve homeownership thanks to a new national coalition announced today. The Alliance for Stabilizing our Communities - led by the National Urban League (NUL), the National Council of La Raza (NCLR), and the National Coalition for Asian Pacific American Community Development (National CAPACD) - was created, with the help of Bank of America, to assist multicultural homeowners facing foreclosure identify and procure the best housing solutions possible.
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Specifically, the alliance will direct new resources to a nationwide network of local housing counseling entities in 27 communities with numbers of multicultural homeowners at risk of foreclosure above the national average. These resources will provide greater capacity to the local partners, enabling them to respond more effectively to homeowners seeking assistance. Counselors anticipate significantly increased demand for assistance following the Obama Administration's new Making Home Affordable plan going into effect in March.
As part of Bank of America's $35 million neighborhood preservation and foreclosure prevention package announced last year, the alliance will receive $2.5 million from Bank of America to provide:
- Additional counselors in local markets
- Training to new and existing counselors
- Multi-language outreach materials to educate at-risk borrowers about their options
- A new resource guide to help communities respond to foreclosure challenges
The alliance will also organize 40 home retention fairs that are expected to serve more than 11,000 households. The fairs will provide extensive onsite counseling services by HUD- approved alliance nonprofits in multiple languages. Bank of America home retention associates will work with the nonprofits at these fairs to review loans and determine refinancing, modification or other options. Last year, Bank of America announced it will offer loan modifications over the next three years to as many as 630,000 Bank of America and Countrywide customers, representing more than $100 billion in mortgage financing.
"The alliance brings together the most trusted advisors in our ethnic communities to better address the unique needs of these homeowners, including bringing more resources to our local affiliates to help keep families in their homes or find the best option for them," said Janet Murguia, president and CEO, NCLR.
"We are proud to be a part of the alliance," added Lisa Hasegawa, executive director, National CAPACD. "Our members and partners best understand the cultural nuances and challenges that too often prevent at-risk Asian American and Pacific Islander families from getting the assistance they need to keep their homes. By bringing together our combined expertise and resources, we can assist homeowners in a linguistically and culturally competent manner."
"Homeowners can look to this alliance and its local network of trusted experts for help," said Marc H. Morial, president and CEO, National Urban League. "The National Urban League is proud to be a part of this national effort bringing more resources and counseling services to those in greatest need."
"We see first-hand the affects of the deteriorating economy on homeowners and their communities," said Andrew Plepler, Bank of America Global Community Impact executive. "Sustained homeownership and recovery of our communities is a priority for Bank of America, as evidenced by our completion of approximately 230,000 loan modifications for our mortgage customers in 2008 alone. With the help of the alliance and its network of trusted advisors, we can assist even more homeowners in some of the hardest hit communities to achieve long-term mortgage sustainability."
The 27 communities the alliance will target with these new resources are: Phoenix, Ariz.; Tucson, Ariz.; Los Angeles, Calif.; Montebello, Calif.; Stockton, Calif.; San Diego, Calif.; Oakland, Calif.; Denver, Colo.; Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.; Tampa, Fla.; Atlanta, Ga.; Dalton, Ga.; Chicago, Ill.; Hawaii; Kansas City, Kan.; Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minn.; St. Louis, Mo.; Boston, Dorchester and Lowell, Mass.; Las Vegas, Nev.; Newark, N.J.; Jackson Heights, N.Y.; Rochester, N.Y.; Cleveland, Ohio; Columbus, Ohio; Dallas, Tex.; Falls Church, Va.; and Norfolk, Va..
For more information, consumers can call 1-866-842-3391, visit any alliance member organization office or attend a local home retention fair.
About National Council of La Raza
Founded in 1968, the National Council of La Raza (NCLR) is a private, nonprofit, nonpartisan, tax-exempt organization. NCLR is the largest national Hispanic civil rights and advocacy organization in the United States. They work to improve opportunities for Hispanic Americas. Through its network of nearly 300 Affiliated community-based organizations (CBOs) NCLR reaches millions of Hispanics each year in 41 states, Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia. To achieve its mission, NCLR conducts applied research, policy analysis, and advocacy, providing a Latino perspective in five key areas - assets/investments, civil rights/immigration, education, employment and economic status, and health. In addition, it provides capacity-building assistance to its Affiliates who work at the state and local level to advance opportunities for individuals and families.
About National Urban League
Established in 1910, The National Urban League is the nation's oldest and largest community-based movement devoted to empowering African Americans to enter the economic and social mainstream. Today, the National Urban League, headquartered in New York City, spearheads the non-partisan efforts of its local affiliates. There are over 100 local affiliates of the National Urban League located in 35 states and the District of Columbia providing direct services to more than 2 million people nationwide through program, advocacy and research. The mission of the Urban League movement is to enable African Americans to secure economic self-reliance, parity, power and civil rights. To achieve its mission they employ a five point strategy, tailored to local needs that include, Education and Youth Empowerment, Economic Empowerment, Health and Quality of Life Empowerment, Civil Engagement and Leadership Empowerment and Civil Rights and Racial Justice Empowerment. www.nul.org.
About National CAPACD
National CAPACD is the first and only national advocacy organization dedicated to addressing the community development needs of diverse and rapidly growing Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities. They are a membership-based network of more than 100 organizations and individuals in 17 states that serve Asian Americans, Pacific Islanders, Native Hawaiians, refugees and immigrants nationwide. The members use innovative affordable housing, community development, organizing and planning strategies to improve the well-being of low-income AAPI communities. Since 1999, National CAPACD has brought together some of the most sophisticated, comprehensive and active community development agencies, social service providers, national organizations, advocates and organizers. To find out more, please visit www.nationalcapacd.org.
About Bank of America
Bank of America is one of the world's largest financial institutions, serving individual consumers, small and middle market businesses and large corporations with a full range of banking, investing, asset management and other financial and risk-management products and services. The company provides unmatched convenience in the United States, serving more than 59 million consumer and small business relationships with more than 6,100 retail banking offices, nearly 18,700 ATMs and award-winning online banking with nearly 29 million active users. Following the acquisition of Merrill Lynch on January 1, 2009, Bank of America is among the world's leading wealth management companies and is a global leader in corporate and investment banking and trading across a broad range of asset classes serving corporations, governments, institutions and individuals around the world. Bank of America offers industry-leading support to more than 4 million small business owners through a suite of innovative, easy-to-use online products and services. The company serves clients in more than 150 countries. Bank of America Corporation stock is a component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average and is listed on the New York Stock Exchange. www.bankofamerica.com.
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SOURCE: Bank of America
Web site: http://www.bankofamerica.com/
