1993. Moreover, Neighborhood Housing Services of America has developed new lending programs to further leverage obtainable funds. A major challenge during FY 1995 will be to foster the growth of Neighborhood Housing Services of America so that it can meet the rapidly expanding needs of the NeighborWorks® network (see section on NHSA for more details). In FY 1995, Neighborhood Reinvestment will work to raise equity for the NeighborWorks® network from various foundations and other organizations, and will assist in the creation of local lending pools to increase home ownership lending. This activity will be balanced with training and technical assistance designed to equip NeighborWorks® organizations to raise funds for operating costs such as loan originators. NeighborWorks® Campaign for Home Ownership A positive outgrowth derived from years of experience and the low interest environment is advancement of home ownership as the key to healthy communities. For lower-income families whose wages have, at best, remained indexed to cost increases, the ability to become a home owner is equivalent to exercising greater control over their environment. A healthy neighborhood is built out of households who envision remaining in the community for a long period of time. To advance this objective, Neighborhood Reinvestment launched the NeighborWorks Campaign for Home Ownership in June 1993. The goals of the NeighborWorks® Campaign for Home Ownership are to: Create 10,000 new low- to moderate- income homeowners in the network's 150 cities and rural areas over the next five years. Counsel more than 75,000 potential homeowners through Enlist lenders, thrifts, insurance companies, foundations and corporations as national and regional sponsors to attract $650,000,000 in resources to accomplish this goal. Enlist the support of financial institutions, corporations and foundations in providing flexible, lowinterest financing that will allow new homeowners not only to buy affordable homes but also to keep them. Assist each new homeowner with a range of services including: BY FY 1995, the third year of the Campaign, we anticipate a possible doubling of participation by local programs, extensive use of more powerful private-sector tools including secondary markets and mortgage insurance partners and the primary lenders (see Tab DD). Creating and strengthening NeighborWorks® organisations Once a request for the creation of a new NeighborWorks® organization is proposed--usually by various neighborhood groups, city or state agencies, businesses, or financial institutions--the Corporation will assess local resources. When the assessment has been completed, Neighborhood Reinvestment may commit to develop a new partnership. At the conclusion of this development process, the NeighborWorks® organization becomes an autonomous, statechartered, tax-exempt, nonprofit corporation. often, Neighborworks® organizations will continue revitalization efforts in their targeted areas until an organized local leadership capable of maintaining and monitoring the community's progress is established. To help NeighborWorks organizations overcome obstacles and to ensure success, the Corporation provides ongoing services in the form of technical assistance. Technical assistance is critical because many of the communities served are in fragile condition, and moreover, the road to renewal is difficult to maneuver. Additionally, a majority of the NWOs are very small. For example, over 50% have annual budgets of less than $158,000. The neighborhood must achieve a significantly sound real estate market, and exhibit other visible improvements before the services provided by the NeighborWorks® organization can be directed toward new neighborhoods. (see Programmatic Activity section for more details). Training and Information During FY 1993, participation in Neighborhood Reinvestment Training Institutes grew to 2,202 people, almost one third of whom were not associated with a NeighborWorks® organization. Current Training Institute partners are comprised of the Institute of Real Estate Management (IREM), Enterprise Foundation, Habitat for Humanity and the American Institute of Architects. Additionally, courses are now being taught in the Spanish language. The first widely distributed training materials produced include a three-volume set on lending. FY 1995, Neighborhood Reinvestment will continue growing to meet increased demand, and will strengthen concentration on training for volunteer board and resident leadership. A symposium on home ownership lending at low-income levels is planned, as well as continued publication of technical manuals. To help organizations achieve stability, Neighborhood Reinvestment provides a wide range of technical assistance. Corporation staff works directly with local boards and staff members to determine strategies, prepare proposals and submit financial packages. These efforts are designed to preserve the affordable housing stock and to increase the capacity of the organizations. Training and provision of information will be a critical focus to support organizations and local governments seeking to capitalize on the reduced interest rate environment, increased attention to community development and the burgeoning access to private capital. Additionally, the growth in NeighborWorks® organizations' activity, as witnessed by the 15% increase in use of the revolving loan funds from FY 1991 to FY 1993, and the 43% increase in other investment during the same time period, creates increased demand for training. The Training Institutes, offered three times each year, have grown to over 400 participants taking 40-plus classes during the five-day period. Training materials are now available year round in print format. Continued expansion of this activity has come through an attendance fee paid by participants, and through the raising of scholarship dollars for those organizations most in need. To supplement basic "nuts and bolts" training, the Corporation will continue its efforts to inform the community development network through the use of a symposium on home ownership for lower-income families, regional information exchange forums, publication of materials and training of local board leadership in regional and national settings. Utilizing Computer Technology In order to make more efficient use of resources, and to serve the NeighborWorks® organizations in the most practical manner, Neighborhood Reinvestment is concentrating on upgrading its computer system. The Corporation's current computer system, based on a 1983 mini computer and accounting software package, has almost become a hindrance rather than a help. During FY 1994 and FY 1995, the Corporation plans installation of a wide area network to accomplish three objectives: (1) to implement fully integrated accounting software to handle object and functional reports; (2) improve access by Neighborhood Reinvestment staff (and eventually the NeighborWorks® organizations') to the Corporation's information; and (3) reduce administrative burdens by reducing paper. Implementation of a new computer system will allow Neighborhood Reinvestment to link its purchasing, time accounting, accounts payable, accounts receivable and assets management records through a single data entry method. Manuals, publications and other documents will be available to all units electronically, and an email system will be established to improve internal communications. In FY 1994, Neighborhood Reinvestment contracted with consultants to review the Corporation's current computer environment, analyze and document accounting and information management needs and design an automated system to facilitate the sharing of information among our various units; including a financial and fixed asset management system. The consultants developed a baseline description to outline Neighborhood Reinvestment's current business functions, system technology and information resources management infrastructure. Design of the system is presently underway. In the spring of 1994, Neighborhood Reinvestment intends to issue a Request for Proposal to technology vendors to procure, install and implement computer hardware and software as specified by the consultant. THE NEIGHBORWORKS® NETWORK Each of the NeighborWorks® organizations is a locally initiated and controlled corporation, federally exempt under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Each NeighborWorks® organization is granted a charter which outlines the high standards of practice and performance required. Each NeighborWorks® organization is governed by a board of directors comprised of community residents, representatives of the private sector and of local government. Nationally, the NeighborWorks network is active in 150 cities serving 177 neighborhoods containing 4.8 million Americans--this is in addition to the 14 city wide organizations and the three statewide organizations. A list of NeighborWorks® communities can be found at Tab W. Moreover, the local profile of NeighborWorks® board and staff members is broadly representative of the individuals and communities being served. The population of neighborhoods served by the NeighborWorks® organizations is 52% white, 32% African-American and 20% Hispanic (see next page). In general, members of the NeighborWorks® network are small organizations tackling a large, and at times, seemingly impossible mission. In 1993, the NeighborWorks® network created or rehabilitated 6,600 units of affordable housing; of these, nearly 1,884 units were secured for new homeowners. of the $210 million invested in NeighborWorks® neighborhoods in 1993, $26 million was directly invested by NeighborWorks® organizations, and $184 million in private- and public-sector resources was directed by NeighborWorks® organizations. First and second mortgage lending for single- and multi-family housing remains the primary tool employed by NeighborWorks® organizations to foster revitalization in lower-income neighborhoods. A myriad of other projects are also undertaken to complement NeighborWorks® lending activity and to ensure comprehensive strategies to address varied community problems. A sampling of some strategies employed is provided below (a full listing can be found in the appendix under Tab V). While, improving housing cannot, by itself, transform a neighborhood, the condition of housing speaks more about a neighborhood to internal and external audiences than any other single factor. Creating safe, attractive, affordable housing for |