As National Recipe Changes, So Should Marketing of Housing
The metaphor of the American melting pot has been around since the foundation of the republic, though the great breadth of peoples coming to the US did not really expand until the end of the nineteenth century. But along with the melting pot have come vociferous and sometimes violent resistance to immigrants – especially toward specific groups at specific times (the Irish in the mid-nineteenth century, the Italians in the early twentieth century, Mexicans today…). The fact of the matter is: the various groups who make up the population of the US have shifted and reshifted over the last couple of hundred years. They are mostly looking for a safe place to participate in the American experiment and raise their families. Therefore we ask if housing marketers and organizations are taking on board the population trends in their outreach.
Popularity: unranked | Category Affordable Housing, Marketing, National/International, Nonprofit | | View Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, Ph. D
Baltimore Finding Ways To Urban Renewal That Do Not Adversely Dislocate
In so many ways Baltimore spent much of the second half of the twentieth century as a city that snatched defeat from the jaws of victory: A vibrant industrial and trading city with a notable financial sector as well (in the decade after World War II), a city of some 2 million people who enjoyed the second most extensive trolley-car network in the US, a city with a pennant-winning baseball team (Yes, it was that long ago…). But by the late 1960s, the city was riven with racial violence, ‘white flight,’ and the secretly organized dismantling of much of its public transport for the sake of union jobs in a GM plant (now greatly reduced and outside the city). Needless, to say, the Orioles remain comfortably buried in the cellar of the AL East. Fortunately, he most recent efforts to revitalize the city, with the overwhelming input of Johns Hopkins University (disclaimer: the blogger is a graduate of said institution), are drawing support, ever-growing funds, and even praise — all of which deserve our attention.
Popularity: unranked | Category Affordable Housing, Grants and Funding, Local/Maryland, News and Current Affairs, Politics, Revitalization | | View Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, Ph. D
Perspectives: Bernell Grier, CEO of Neighborhood Housing Services of New York City
Bernell Grier, CEO of Neighborhood Housing Services of NYC
The board of directors of the Neighborhood Housing Services of New York City recently appointed interim chief executive officer Bernell Grier as the CEO of the organization. Ms. Grier has built up an impressive resume as a banker having over her career serving as EVP, Retail Community Banking; SVP Middle Marketing Lending; Community Development Director; and credit program co-manager – all before moving full time to NHS of NYC. As COO, Bernell helped steer the NHS offices in New York City’s five boroughs through the rough waters of the collapsing housing market, and has continued to work to expand NHS’s base of donors and projects. We had the pleasure of talking with her on a bright June morning in midtown Manhattan before her full docket of business got under way.
Bernell’s career trajectory is a wonderful example of how preparation and consideration can meet serendipity, as she has moved between the corporate and nonprofit worlds with ease, a smile, and a strong sense of calling to community. Her first job as a teenager living in Harlem, New York, was as a Community Outreach Coordinator with “Neighborhood Board No. One.” She began with a plan to teach mathematics in the very public school system that gave her the good start she enjoyed, so she went to City College of New York for teacher accreditation in education and math. The need for a summer job took her to Chase Bank Manhattan, where her people-skills were already evident enough that she was offered a spot in management training. One is tempted here to say “And the rest is history.” But ‘the rest’ is where it gets interesting.
Popularity: unranked | Category Affordable Housing, Community, Grants and Funding, Nonprofit, Revitalization, interview | | View Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, Ph. D
NeighborWorks Week Draws To Successful Close
The NeighborWorks Week (June 5-12) that just finished (and that we promoted a couple of weeks ago) focused on educating homeowners to the danger signs of mortgage-assistance scams and predatory loan practices. According to the NeighborWorks website, “NeighborWorks America and local NeighborWorks organizations held more than 320 community revitalization and 150 loan modification scam awareness events nationwide.” Not surprisingly, one of the bigger shows of force was in New York City, where the issue was put up in lights. Literally.
Popularity: 1% | Category Affordable Housing, Banking & Finance, Community, Nonprofit, Revitalization | | View Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, Ph. D
Harvard Study Argues for Jobs, Then Houses – Which Is The Cart?
Can unemployed afford one of these?
The financial crisis that began in earnest in 2007 and came to a head in 2008 has driven up unemployment to the highest point it has been since the Great Depression. Even with this statistic, though, we might want to appreciate how much has changed and how different the scale is (admittedly, cold comfort for the unemployed): For much of the 1930s unemployment was above 15%, and at its worst unemployment was north of 20%. The worst unemployment figures for the ‘Great Recession’ just got past 10% in the winter months of 2009. No one makes light of even 7% unemployment, and as we have recently commented upon, the recent uptick in employment this past spring is not likely to last the next month.
The smart money has been to argue that the bursting of the housing bubble brought about unemployment, and thus a rise the housing market will stimulate job growth and lead toward economic upswing. But a recent study from Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies strengthens the arguments of those who say the collapse of the housing market might have pulled us down, but it can not pull us up. Who could buy a new home, thus stimulate the market in question, if they are unemployed from the millions of jobs lost in other sectors of the economy?
Popularity: unranked | Category Affordable Housing, Community, Revitalization | | View Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, Ph. D
Jobs Report Suggests Slight Or Slighter Growth Depending on Source
The release of the government’s jobs report this past week was cause for about as much speculation as Apple Inc.’s World Wide Developers’ Conference is this week. And just as people pretty much knew about Apple’s fourth-generation iPhone weeks ago, so people were pretty sure what the jobs report would look like before it was made official. The jobs report needed contextualization within the economic disasters we have endured for the last three years. We will leave contextualization of Apple’s WWDC and new iPhone for another post.
Job Losses and Gains Since Jan. 2010
Popularity: unranked | Category Affordable Housing, Banking & Finance, National/International, News and Current Affairs, Opinion, Politics | | View Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, Ph. D
Kicking A (Housing) Market While It’s Down
We are not a glum group at MKCREATIVE by any means. We just believe ‘forewarned is forearmed.’ Yesterday we discussed the local (read: Baltimore-Washington region) housing market, which did not enjoy a notable bubble and (thus?) has not suffered a violent bust. Nevertheless, the region is seeing a striking deflation in home values as foreclosures bite into more and more families. Anecdotal and personal evidence has seen not a few houses go from lived-in to empty to for sale in a few months, victims of foreclosure. In this region’s case, the problems stem not so much from over leveraged home loans made to people told/believing the market would never again shrink but from the fact that the Recession and unemployment (or worse, the terrible and larger problem of underemployment) continue to erode people’s savings and thus their abilities to keep up with their mortgages. Two years into The Great Recession has left many at the end of their abilities to pay, so their homes join the growing list of foreclosures (as reported yesterday, 35% of the homes for sale through April are foreclosed, compared to 22% from last year in Baltimore alone). A short-sold home gives no relief to the home owner from creditors, of course, as creditors get to buy back the house on the cheap and hold it until the market improves so they can sell it again.
Ah, but when will that happen?
Popularity: unranked | Category Affordable Housing, Community, National/International, News and Current Affairs, Opinion, Politics, Sustainability | | View Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, Ph. D
‘Resilient Baltimore’ Probably Needs Resilient Housing Market
Up in Baltimore City from 22% to 35%
Economists, reporters, politicians, and bloggers have all proclaimed and/or wondered if The Great Recession is over. Our blog has followed some of these statistics and claims at the national level, but today we want to look specifically at the situation in Baltimore and its housing market.
Many (weak) signs suggest bottoms have been found in a number of markets, and perhaps its human nature for us to seek out and accept the good news. As we have previously reported, the mid-Atlantic did not enjoy a stunning housing bubble, and thus did not endure a painful popping of that bubble. According to CNN Money, “In the Maryland and Virginia suburbs around Washington, the restrictions on building are among the most onerous in the entire nation. As a result, only a trickle of new housing is coming on the market, despite the good economy and strong job growth in the Washington area.” So-far-so-good…
Popularity: unranked | Category Affordable Housing, Community, Local/Maryland, Politics, Sustainability | | View Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, Ph. D
NeighborWorks Video Outlines
Home-Inspection Process
The housing market continues to prove to be a tough bubble to burst, though the Recession is technically over. Nevertheless, many are stepping into the housing market and the good folks at NeighborWorks have posted the video you see above on their blog and at YouTube. Home inspection is not necessarily a make-or-break moment in the decision process. One might freely choose to purchase a house with a notably low rating, for example. But the point of inspection is to help ensure all parties are aware of hidden – and not-so-hidden – damage or obsolescence in a house. The video shows you some of the concerns a professional home inspector will be looking for when she or his is brought to the property.
The inspectors within the video stress the need for a systematic look from the outside in and from the basement to attic. Some of the stuff is obvious (damaged concrete steps? torn siding? moldy baseboards in bathroom? …), but the tougher question might be the timing of what is found. For example, is the damaged stucco on the back porch from thirty years of family life or from a series of repairs that suggest an untreated deeper problem?
Another point that requires due diligence is the utility infrastructure of the house. Our computers and coffee machines and space heaters have changed faster than the utility boxes in our homes. When reviewing a house for purchase, be sure its fuse box, heating and air-conditioning units, water heater, etc., are new enough to handle the expected work load. If they are within a reasonable time frame, can the owner (or, nowadays, the bank’s realtor) provide maintenance histories? Be sure you are keeping one as well!
Purchasing a home is fraught with familial and budgetary stresses, but the rewards can be great. Inspections are meant to mitigate stress and to flush out unforeseen costs or hazards. If you are in the market, watch the video, bookmark the Neighborworks website, and arm yourself with as much information as you can.
Popularity: unranked | Category Affordable Housing, Nonprofit | | View Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, Ph. D
EcoFest Success and Green Construction in Baltimore
EcoFest Drum Circle
Baltimore GreenWorks pulled off another great EcoFest (the first being in 2005) this past week! Weather was a bit cool, but sunny and the MKCREATIVE team members who attended this small gathering had a great time. Many folks came out to enjoy good food, music, and bonding. A number of eco-engaged sponsors and merchants were there as well, which made a great reminder of how public interest and private enterprise can work together for the enrichment of both. (more…)
Popularity: unranked | Category Affordable Housing, Community, Greening, Revitalization | | View Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, Ph. D
Baltimore Hosting A Number of Homeownership & Greening Events
The approach of Tax Day can cloud memories of other opportunities, so we wanted to post reminders of a number of upcoming events for the greening of Our Fair City. First off, please do not forget the fun we will have at Druid Hill Park this Saturday, 17 April, from 12:pm to 6:pm. EcoFest hosted by the Baltimore GreenWorks and a myriad of local vendors and greening organizations. The weather prognosis looks good for the weekend, and what a great way to wash away memories of sweating over your 1040?
Popularity: 1% | Category Affordable Housing, Community, Conference/Congress, Education: General, Greening, Local/Maryland, Politics | | View Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, Ph. D
Recent Developments in MA Show Economic Opportunities and Pressures on Community Housing
The Neighborhood Housing Service of Springfield Massachusetts has recently sponsored the building of low-income modular homes in their Old Hill neighborhood. The project is notable for at least two great reasons: First, the Springfield NHS built the homes on what had been ‘trash strewn vacant lots,’ so the entire community enjoys aesthetic and economic boosts. Second, the modular buildings used for the homes have inspired the NHS board to “work strictly in modular … we’re very pleased with the quality of the work.” Thus even low-cost housing will include bamboo-wood floors (bamboo being easily sustainable/replaceable) and central heating and air. A growing market in such modular housing could help keep prices down, even as further improvements are made.
Popularity: unranked | Category Affordable Housing, Banking & Finance, Community, News and Current Affairs, Revitalization | | View Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, Ph. D
ACORN Shuts Down and/or Breaks Up
Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now closes national offices.
The board of the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now announced today that its national organization was shutting down operations, though state-level community organizations may (and surely will) continue to function. The move likely was, as Frank James at NPR‘s blog put it, a “mercy killing.” The national organization faced charges of bending rules on early elections leading up to the presidential election of 2008, and its situation got only more precarious after the infamous ‘pimp’ video apparently showed ACORN employees assisting a self-proclaimed (albeit undercover former employee) pimp get a mortgage loan for a single-family home he wanted to turn into his brothel.
Popularity: unranked | Category Affordable Housing, Community, National/International, News and Current Affairs, Opinion, Politics | | View Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, Ph. D
NeighborWorks Offers $119 Million For Community Development
After yesterday’s report about the trickle of federal recovery aid being used to assist mortgage holders on the brink of foreclosure, we can return to the topic of the housing crisis with some much better news. NeighborWorks America has announced that it will be distributing $119 million in grants for this year. The amount is made up of funds allocated by Congress and by philanthropic donations to the organization. Most of the money will go to regional and local NeighborWorks offices, so homeowners will best be served by working with one of their 237 (and growing) local offices.
Popularity: unranked | Category Affordable Housing, Community, Grants and Funding, Nonprofit, Revitalization | | View Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, Ph. D
Homeowners Getting Federal Help
- Image via Wikipedia
The mortgage bubble that Wall Street players were puffing up and were betting would break has, of course, brought down almost everything else with it (save investor bonuses). The fallout was one of the many catalysts for the sweeping political change of the elections of 2008. One of the loudest political debates was over whether federal recovery and stimulus money should go to banks and investment houses who could not expect repayment on their loans or to homeowners whose hastily purchased and heavily leveraged houses were suddenly underwater. Though the debate continues, many of us seem already to have accepted the inevitable: banks and investment houses have lobbyists, home owners have bills. But some efforts to improve the situation on the ground can be found.
Popularity: unranked | Category Affordable Housing, Banking & Finance, Community, National/International, News and Current Affairs, Opinion, Politics | | View Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, Ph. D
Baltimore And Its Home-Seekers Want 1Gigabit Network
Gus G. Sentementes, tech guru at The Baltimore Sun, has recently reported on the efforts of the Greater Baltimore Committee (with the help of Under Armour, Inc.) to lure Google to bring its one-gigabyte-per-second network to Charm City. We reported on Google’s announcement and Request for Proposals about six weeks ago, and our fair city is now in the hunt. The MKCREATIVE blog reported on the many pluses of the project, though one of limited population scope. But here’s hoping… The faster network could help home shoppers find the houses of their dreams that nanosecond as well. If they are savvy about how to search…
Popularity: unranked | Category Affordable Housing, Community, Local/Maryland, Politics, Revitalization, Technology, Web and Print | | View Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, Ph. D
Banks Back to Profitability (& Bonuses) But Homeowners Still Drowning
The Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) likely kept the banking industry afloat, and few doubt the necessity to keep the banking industry solvent for the sake of functioning markets and businesses. The bailout began under the president who encouraged the housing bubble in the first place, and was accepted by the Obama Administration as a necessity, albeit an unpleasant one. But over the past couple of months, the present administration has spent much of its ‘political capital’ trying to explain the value of the $700+ billion dollar program while trying to move toward direct help to the very people the TARP was originally claiming to support: homeowners whose houses were mortgaged beyond the (falling) market value (thus, ‘troubled assets’). What issues confront the homeowner at this time?
Popularity: unranked | Category Affordable Housing, Banking & Finance, Community, National/International, News and Current Affairs, Politics | | View Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, Ph. D
Stark Figures on Housing in Major Markets
The crash of the housing market might be behind us (although ‘Objects in Mirror May Be Closer Than They Appear’), but the recessionary effects abound, as does the detritus of the houses themselves. So many built on the belief that mortgages could be offered indefinitely, and paid back indefinitely as well. The momentum of the buildup meant that has credit got crunched new homes got finished and now we have a glut. Recent news reports have concentrated on that glut, and we wanted to pass some of the grim statistics to our readers.
Popularity: 1% | Category Affordable Housing, Community, National/International, Politics, Revitalization | | View Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, Ph. D
The Social Costs of the Housing Crash: Hispanic Communities in NYC
A foreclosed home in Jamaica Plains, NY
84% of all homes in area in similar danger
Last week we posted a couple of reports pointing to the relative stability in the housing market that Baltimore has ‘enjoyed’ and how the faltering economy seems to have spurred growth in the non-profit sector. Today we are reminded of how important the qualifier ‘relative’ is. Optimists and bank executives largely believe the economy has bottomed out, but the social ramifications (and, likely more of the economic ramifications in the commercial real estate sector) are still to be dealt with. Many of the social tensions that the economic crisis has wound up do their worst damage on those communities already strained by marginalization: recent immigrants and the working poor.
Popularity: unranked | Category Affordable Housing, Banking & Finance, Community, News and Current Affairs, Sustainability | | View Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, Ph. D
Baltimore’s Crisis: Is a Sustainable Resurgence Possible in 2010?
The community/public-service website LiveBaltimore.com recently announced a free workshop entitled “Is Now The Right Time to Buy a Home?” The website then had to announce that the tsnownamis of 2010 have forced postponement. Keep an eye on the site, as LiveBaltimore will soon post the rescheduled event. Which begs the question, IS now the right time?
Popularity: unranked | Category Affordable Housing, Banking & Finance, Community, Local/Maryland, News and Current Affairs | | View Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, Ph. D
AWOL mortgage payers – strategy or selfish?
A follow up to our entry about mortgage modifications: Roger Lowenstein’s report in the NYTimes has caused a great stir in the blogosphere and among radio pundits. We (rightly) have a moral expectation of those who borrow wealth (be it money, our cars, or our favorite tool in the shed). Yet many folks are simply walking away from their underwater homes, even though they have the means to pay. (more…)
Popularity: 1% | Category Affordable Housing, Banking & Finance, Community | | View Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, Ph. D
Mortgage modifications can create more debt/risk
With the collapse of the housing market, we all relearned a concept usually associated with kids, summers at the pool, and vacations at the beach: underwater. The term now stirs feelings of unease, if not panic, as we feel ourselves pulled down by an undertow of debt payments and rising interest rates – especially as they pertain to our houses. (more…)
Popularity: 1% | Category Affordable Housing, Banking & Finance, Community, National/International, Politics | | View Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, Ph. D
NHS Baltimore & Baltimore Sun report on extra-legal debt collection
We are all too aware of how the debts in this country have grown beyond manageability over the last 15-plus years. Democratic and Republican administrations have allowed banks and financial services to write and rewrite their own terms almost at will, and too many customers accepted too-good-to-be-true terms without the necessary due diligence. (more…)
Popularity: 1% | Category Affordable Housing, Banking & Finance, Community, Local/Maryland, Nonprofit, Sustainability | | View Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, Ph. D
Neighborhood Housing Services of East Flatbush Website Launched
We launched a new website for Neighborhood Housing Services of East Flatbush earlier this week. NHS of East Flatbush revitalizes underserved neighborhoods by creating and preserving affordable housing. It offers homeownership education, financial assistance and opportunities for community leadership to neighborhood residents. (more…)
Popularity: 1% | Category Affordable Housing, Community, Nonprofit, Revitalization, Sustainability | | View Comments
Written by: Marco K.
Study of Mission Entrepreneurial Entities and strategies for future development
The Affordable Housing Institute recently released its first comparative study of the work of MEEs (‘Mission Entrepreneurial Entities’) in the public housing sector. The study explores the adaptive advantages MEEs have over both purely private/for-profit enterprises and government and social-work entities. It does so by studying the ways MEEs in the US and in Britain have helped improve and revitalize affordable housing for the urban poor, which in turn has helped expand local economies and opportunities for everyone. (more…)
Popularity: 1% | Category Affordable Housing, Marketing, Nonprofit, Revitalization, Sustainability | | View Comments
Written by: Christopher Gardner, Ph. D
Neighborhood Housing Services of New York City Website Launched
We launched a new website for Neighborhood Housing Services of New York City earlier this month. NHS of NYC revitalizes underserved neighborhoods by creating and preserving affordable housing. It offers homeownership education, financial assistance and opportunities for community leadership to neighborhood residents. (more…)
Popularity: 4% | Category Affordable Housing, Community, Nonprofit, Revitalization, Sustainability | | View Comments
Written by: Marco K.
MKCREATIVE begins Website development for Neighborhood Housing Services of East Flatbush
The MKCREATIVE team has begun work on a “refreshed” website for Neighborhood Housing Services of East Flatbush (NHSEF). (more…)
Popularity: 28% | Category Affordable Housing, Community, Revitalization, Sustainability | | View Comments
Written by: Marco K.
MKCREATIVE begins Website development for Neighborhood Housing Services of New York City
The MKCREATIVE team has begun work on a multi-website solution for Neighborhood Housing Services of New York City (NHS NYC).
NHS NYC revitalizes underserved neighborhoods by creating and preserving affordable housing and providing opportunities for homeownership education, financial assistance and community leadership. Working in partnership with government and business, NHS NYC are led by local residents and guided by local needs. (more…)
Popularity: 29% | Category Affordable Housing, Community, Nonprofit, Revitalization | | View Comments
Written by: Marco K.