February 2021

Your Intermittent News & Updates

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Central New Yorkers put HHQ in the #1 Lending Spot in the Nation

Central New Yorkers obviously decided that a pandemic was not going to stop their home renovation and repair plans as HHQ was recently ranked as the top home repair loan producer amongst more than 240+ NeighborWorks America members across the nation. Stay tuned for an official announcement in the next few weeks and maybe a giant foam finger? Thank you Central New Yorkers!

REQUEST A SHARP APPLICATION BEGINNING MONDAY, 3/1/21

Eligible City of Syracuse homeowners can request a SHARP application through Home HeadQuarters' website beginning Monday, March 1, 2021. Income-eligible homeowners, who have not received a SHARP grant in the last three years, may request an application on our website HERE or call (315) 474-1939 for assistance. An application does not guarantee funding for this program and eligible homeowners are encouraged to submit a contractor bid for requested exterior work along with the application. Funding for this program is extremely limited and available on a first come, first served basis. Funding for this program is made possible by the City of Syracuse through the US Department of HUD Community Development Block Grant Program.

Albany Family Makes Things Happen (with some help from HHQ!)

Since picking up the keys to the family’s newly purchased Albany County Land Bank home earlier this year, Preem Cabey has kept a daily schedule of house-related activities. She visits the house, in-person at least three days a week, sometimes with kids in tow, walking from where the family is renting less than a block away. On non-visit days, Preem meets with contractors, talks with other housing-related professionals and conducts lots of home improvement research so she can learn about building materials like LVL beams and why a house might need one. And while her current house-heavy schedule seems challenging, it in no way compares to the challenges and obstacles Preem faced to get here. “I always knew I wanted to buy a house,” says Preem, a community artist and advocate and city police dispatcher. “All my friends and family just rented all their lives--rent, rent, rent, all that money going down the drain.” So Preem did all the right things: she took homebuying classes, worked a million jobs and ultimately ignored some self-doubt and went after a better paying job to substantially increase her family’s household income. Preem attended and even volunteered at home buying events sponsored by the Albany County Land Bank, the Albany Community Land Trust, and others. She read and studied, saved, went to as many open houses as she could and finally found the perfect home only eight properties away from where she and her family were renting. Preem’s perfect home was an Albany County Land Bank “fixer-upper” in the historic Knox Street District neighborhood and part of the Land Bank’s Equitable Ownership Program (EOP), a program that pairs eligible first time homebuyers with resources and opportunities like reduced closing costs and legal fees with available Land Bank properties. Preem was not put off by the Land Bank’s realistic and comprehensive scope of work for the vacant property totaling more than $100,000 and the family met all of the agency’s eligibility guidelines for purchase, but this is where Preem’s homebuying journey almost came to an end.

Read the rest of the story about Preem's journey (and *SPOILER ALERT* how she got financed) HERE! Want to get started on your own homeownership story? Take the first step by signing up for Homebuyer Education HERE! Learn more about Purchase & Rehab financing HERE!

Kuumba Collaborative: An Albany Group with Great Intentions Christina Eaton and Asi-Yahole Boutelle founded the Kuumba Collaborative after a mutual friend made a Facebook post about urban inequality. The group, now, five like-minded volunteers strong, all with backgrounds in history, seek to empower their Albany community and end decades of racial inequality. With a community-driven approach to, “getting cities to listen,” the group works on initiatives like cooperative housing, job training, environmental justice issues and investment collectives. At a recent Albany town hall discussing vacant properties, members of the Kuumba Collaborative made sure to ask the tough questions so they can “connect the dots” for their constituency. Have your own tough questions? You can contact the Kuumba Collaborative at kuumbacoop@gmail.com.

Rasheada Caldwell Wins National Resident Leadership Award

Rasheada Caldwell, former HHQ customer, current HHQ Board member and all around amazing person, is one of six resident leaders from across the country to win the prestigious Dorothy Richardson Award. This inspiring NeighborWorks America award and event celebrates resident-led community development and those people who make an impact in their community.

As part of this overall effort, Rasheada is also leading a team participating in NeighborWorks' Community Leadership Institute which provides seed money for a neighborhood-based project. Read Rasheada's Dorothy Richardson award-winning story HERE and make sure to watch the amazing video!

Syracuse Financial Empowerment Center Customer Sees Real Progress

Maria G. first came to see Syracuse FEC Financial Counselor Jasminn Ray last year when she realized she was paying so much for rent each month, she was unable to see a path to owning her own home. After the first meeting, Maria had a list in hand of all her outstanding debt, some of it so old, she didn't even remember she had it. After working with each creditor, meeting multiple times with Jasminn and keeping track of current spending, Maria now has only one more outstanding account to pay off before she can confidently apply for a mortgage. Maria recently sent a note saying how appreciative she was for all of Jasminn's efforts. She wished others knew that they didn't need to pay for financial counseling! Make your first, free financial counseling appointment today!

Hot (Super Hot!) Links

How to Avoid Lead Hazards in Your Home HHQ has put together a short video filled with tips for parents and care givers on how to avoid lead hazards in the home. Seven different language videos are available for download from our YouTube Channel or on thumb drives. Thank you to the Health Foundation for Western and Central New York for providing funding to make this project possible.

Not Quite on the Up and Up We've been hearing some odd things about people who may or may not be valid sales people trying to get homeowners to sign contracts for home repair that may or may not be valid. Please be careful and follow the tips for making sure your contractor measures up.

1% Home Improvement Loans for Homeowners HHQ has 1% home improvement loans for income-eligible homeowners who live in Mattydale, E. Syracuse and N. Syracuse and who have been impacted in some way by COVID. Interested in learning more or downloading an application? Visit our website HERE!

Sankofa Neighborhood 1% Home Improvement Loans If you live in the neighborhood bounded by Taylor St., Rt. 81, Cortland Ave., Midland Ave. and Brighton Ave., you can take advantage of a 1% home improvement loan. Get more info and download an application HERE!

Thank You to Members of our Crew!

Members of our crew put up three of these signs celebrating the construction of new single-family homes as part of Syracuse Mayor Walsh's Resurgent Neighborhoods Initiative while it was barely above freezing last week. We owe them one (and promise we won't put up any more signs until it's warmer...or maybe next week).

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