Helping to turn on porch lights and build foundations in the lives of Minnesotans“ ”

Annual Report 2011

www.hocmn.org

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www.hocmn.org

We are committed to being the state’s leading independent, non-profit provider of homeownership

education and resources.

We are here for all Minnesotans who need help pursuing the dream of owning and maintaining a home of their own. Overall, we helped over XX,XXX Minnesotans in 2011 find and maintain their home, through our home-buying and foreclosure prevention services.

We believe that with the right resources and education, homeownership can be a reality and we focus much of our support on low- and moderate- income households in Minnesota. We also focus services on

communities of color that have historically experienced limited access to assistance programs. We know that investing in long-term, sustainable homeownership is good for both the homeowners (and their families) and our community as a whole.

Many of the people we help never thought that they could own a home of their own and we make lasting change in the lives of those with the greatest barriers and challenges to homeownership. Advocacy and ongoing edu-cation is key to what we do, and helping the clients we serve become their own advocates ensures that they remain in their homes for the long-term.

Since 1993, we have served over 100,000 Minnesotans through our range of home ownership services, from pre-purchase edu-cation to foreclosure prevention counseling.

We recognize that owning a home is the dream of many Minnesotans. “ ”

Many of the people we help never thought that they could own a home of their own.

“”

“We make lasting change in the lives of those with the greatest barriers and challenges.”

OUR MISSION The Minnesota Homeownership Center’s mission is to promote and advance successful homeownership in Minnesota, with a focus on serving the needs of low- and moderate-income families and emerging markets.

At the core of this mission is the belief that lower income households can achieve and recognize the benefits of long-term homeownership if they enter homeowner-ship through the right door—prepared to make wise, informed decisions for their families.

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Minnesota Homeownership Center Annual Report 2011

”How we do what we doPartnering with others to ensure access and success for all

Strength lies in numbers and our greatest asset is the connections we have made. Through our partnerships, we provide

the entire state with homebuyer education and foreclosure counseling.

We manage the Homeownership Advisors Network, comprised of 50 community-focused non-profit, government, tribal and for-profit organizations that educate and counsel new homebuyers and those facing foreclosure.

The ultimate goal of the Minnesota Homeownership Center and the Homeownership Advisors Network is successful homeownership for all.

2011 highlights of the network:

The African Families Development •Network joined the network, opening our services to African immigrant families.

The Hmong American Partnership •expanded to include homebuyer services to the Hmong community.

The network adopted national •standards for homeownership counseling and standardized counseling practices have helped ensure efficiency and quality across all providers.

We’ve increased the availability of •continuing education, improving the quality of services offered by the network.

2011 Homeownership Advisors Network1st Homes Network

African Development CenterAfrican Families Development Network

Albert Lea Housing AuthorityAmerican Dream Services

American Indian Community Development CorporationAnoka County Community Action ProgramArrowhead Economic Opportunity Agency

Austin Housing and Redevelopment AuthorityBi-County Community Action Programs

Carver County Community Development AgencyCCCS of The Village Family Service CenterCentral Minnesota Housing Partnership

City of OwatonnaCommunity Action Duluth

Community Action Partnership of Suburban HennepinCommunity Neighborhood Housing Services

Dakota County Community Development AgencyFamily Life Credit Services

Headwaters Regional Development CommissionHmong American Partnership

InterCounty Community CouncilKOOTASCA Community Action, Inc.Lao Assistance Center of Minnesota

LSS Financial CounselingMankato Ecomonic Development Agency

MCASA c/o Model Cities Community Development CorporationNeighborhood Development Alliance

Neighborhood Housing Services of Minneapolis, Inc.Northwest Community Action Program

One Roof Housing (FKA Neighborhood Housing Services of Duluth, Inc.)Otter Tail-Wadena Community Action Council

PRG, Inc.Reverse Mortgage Counselors, Inc.

Rochester Olmsted Community Housing PartnershipRW Media, Inc

Scott County Community Development AgencySouthwest Minnesota Housing Partnership

St. Paul Planning and Economic DevelopmentStrickland and Associates

Three Rivers Community ActionTri-Valley Opportunity Council

Twin Cities Habitat for HumanityWashington County Housing and Redevelopment Authority

West Central Minnesota Communities ActionWhite Earth Investment Initiative

Wright County Community Action, Inc.

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CLIENT PROFILE: A neighborhood helps make a new home for Maggie and Lucia

Maggie and her four-year-old daughter, Lucia, are spending their first summer in their new home on the east side of St. Paul. She’s a busy single working mother, with her days spent

as the America Indian Student Services Coordinator at Metro State University, where she also received her B.A in Psychology in 2010. Her evenings are spent settling into the one-and-a-half story, recently re-modeled home that she purchased and moved into with Lucia. “I love everything about it. It’s the perfect size, with room to grow.”

Growing up in both St. Paul and Minneapolis, bouncing around a bit, Maggie never thought of herself as a potential homeowner. “My mom was always a renter.” Packing up and moving often as a child and teen, also meant changing schools frequently throughout the years. “When I was in my early 20s, I never saw myself in a house. I thought I was going to travel around.” When her daughter came along in her mid-20s, Maggie knew that she wanted to give her a sense of stability that wasn’t always there when she was little.

“When I first started thinking about buying a house, I wasn’t even sure of what the steps were. I needed to learn them.” Help came from an Introductory Homebuyer Workshop from The American Indian Community Development Cor-poration. The AICDC is a member of the Homeownership Advisors Network and the workshop introduced Maggie to three key elements of securing her first home: resources, funding-sources, and support.

“I learned about all the resources available to me. I discovered the HUD 184 program, which is a great program.” The Section 184 In-

dian Home Loan Guarantee Program is a home mortgage specifically designed for American Indian and Alaska Native families, Alaska Vil-

lages, Tribes, or Tribally Designated Housing Entities. “They showed me the grants available for first-time homebuyers. I was also referred to the Woodlands National Bank, which is a native-owned bank.”

The network of counselors and advisors also helped Maggie under-stand who all the players in the process were, which can be quite confusing to a first-time homebuyer. “I learned how everyone was con-nected and that my realtor had my best interest in mind.”

“My daughter just loves the house. And I just love the neighborhood and how my daughter loves playing with the neighbors. It’s awesome.” Maggie and Lucia’s neighborhood is the final piece in making their house a home and Maggie is looking forward to many years of homeownership and stability for her family on the east side of St. Paul.

“My daughter just loves the house. And I just love the neighborhood.”

“When I first started thinking about buying a house, I wasn’t even sure of what the steps were. I needed to learn them.”

Buying a home is one of the biggest life decisions a person will make. We counsel on making the best possible decisions to ensure success in homeownership.

“

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Minnesota Homeownership Center Annual Report 2011

Homebuying education and advocacy: Helping make homeownership a reality to all Minnesotans

Buying a home is one of the biggest life decisions a person will make, as well as one of the largest financial moves in one’s life-time. We help people get started out on the right foot and stay

with them to make the journey easier and more successful.

Through Home Stretch, our home buyer preparedness workshops, we help homebuyers determine ow much home they can afford, what their barriers may be and how they can overcome them. We educate on the types of mort-gages, the loan closing process, and special programs for first-time homebuyers. Overall, we counsel on making the best possible decisions to ensure success in homeownership. Many of our clients come to us through the Neighborhood Stabilization Program.

Throughout the process, we focus on the individual, assessing the specific needs of each household. Many clients are ready for purchase after an eight hour workshop, while others need more intense coun-seling in areas such as financial literacy and credit. Our counselors are available for one-on-one sessions, to help homebuyers navigate what can sometimes be a confusing process.

Homebuyer counseling services •were made available by phone to help increase access for all.

We’ve created interactive info-•graphics, explaining the steps to successful homeownership in an easy-to-understand, user-friendly way.

With an eye on changing needs, •we began the development of Framework, an online homebuyer education tool, available in the fall of 2012.

Our agency has made up-to-•date information on affordable loan and down payment assistance programs for homebuyers readily available.

Our 2011 Funders$100,000 and above

City of Minneapolis, Community Planning and Economic Development

Hennepin CountyMinnesota HousingTarget Foundation

The McKnight FoundationU.S. Bancorp Foundation and U.S. Bank

Wells Fargo

$50,000 to 99,000 City of St. Paul Planning and Economic

DevelopmentFannie Mae

Housing Partnership NetworkMinnesota Association of Realtors®

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans FoundationUSDA Rural Development

$10,000 to 49,000Ameriprise Financial

F.R. Bigelow FoundationFamily Housing Fund

Greater Minnesota Housing FundM & I Bank

Minnesota Department of CommerceOtto Bremer Foundation

St. Paul FoundationTCF Foundation

Western National Mutual Insurance Company

up to $9,999Austin Mutual Insurance Company

Bremer BankBank of the West

Coldwell Banker BurnetFreddie Mac

Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors®Nexus Community Partners

St. Paul Area Association of Realtors®Valspar Foundation

“We focus on the individual, assessing the specific needs of each household.”

2011 highlights of home-buying education and advocacy:

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CLIENT PROFILE: Barbara saves her home

Barbara’s life as a homeowner has made a complete about-face. Two years ago, she had called her mortgage company and said, “I can’t afford my $1,200 a month house payment. What can I do?”

Her lender suggested a mortgage modification, a process in which the terms of a mortgage are modified outside the original terms of the contract agreed to

by the lender and borrower. Barbara said, “Yes!” and they began the process to lower her payments, to save her Oakdale home

she loved so much. “Above all else, I didn’t want to lose my house.”

After nearly a year, the modification was still not complete. At the time, Barbara was told that the only hope of her home not going to sheriff’s sale (a foreclosure on the property), was to put it up for short sale. In the meantime, her daughter suggested getting in touch with the Washington County Housing and Redevelopment Authority, part of the Homeownership Advisors Network. As good fortune would have it, she was connected with Nicola Viana, a Senior Homeownership Specialist with the HRA.

Barbara received a purchase agreement for her home around the same time, but for a price far below the value of the property. Nicola reviewed Barbara’s financial situ-ation and layed out her options. Barbara decided to apply for a loan modifi-cation with the help and guidance of Nicola. “When a sheriff sale was set to take place, I requested that Barbara’s lender postpone the sale while her file was under review,” Nicola said. When Barbara’s mortgage had been sold to a new lender, Nicola assisted Barbara in starting the application for modification anew, with the goal of getting the monthly payment to $702. “This I knew I

could do,” Barbara said.

“If I hadn’t had Nicola and the HRA when I needed them, I would have lost my house. I did everything she told me.” Every time Barbara spoke with the

lender, she connected with Nicola as well, and with Nicola’s help and advice, the modification was soon in place. “Nicola went above and beyond to make sure everything worked out. And I have my house.” Nicola says: “Barbara’s patience and perseverance served her well through this process; she became her own advocate.”

Barbara believes that if everyone had an organization like the Washington County HRA and a specialist like Nicola, they would most likely be able to keep their homes. “If you do the legwork, and have someone in your corner, and if you want it, you can succeed,” Barbara says.

“If you do the legwork, and have someone in your corner, and if you want it, you can succeed.”

“Barbara’s patience and per-severance served her well through this process; she became her own advocate.”

“Above all else, I didn’t want to lose my house.”

In 2011, over 12,000 homeowners facing the threat of foreclosure were counseled within our Homeownership Advisor’s Network and 50% avoided foreclosure.

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Minnesota Homeownership Center Annual Report 2011

Board of DirectorsOfficersPresident

Michael Haley, Minnesota Housing

Vice President Vicki Shipley, US Bank

Treasurer David Lindstrom, M&I BMO / Harris Bank

Secretary David Eide, Western National Mutual Insurance Company

MembersJill Aleshire, Thrivent Financial Bank

Jerry Boardman, Fannie Mae*Marilyn Bruin, University of Minnesota

Joe Collins, City of Saint Paul, Planning and Economic Development

Darielle Dannen, Metropolitan Consortium of Community Developers

Jim Erchul, Dayton’s Bluff Neighborhood Housing ServicesTom Fulton, Family Housing FundMuffie Gabler, Wells Fargo Bank

Karen Gajeski, Bremer BankChris Galler, Minnesota Association of Realtors®

Jacqueline King, Federal Reserve Bank of MinneapolisRepa Mekha, Nexus Community PartnersRobin Peterson, Coldwell Banker Burnet

Elfric Porte, City of Minneapolis Community Planning & Economic Development

Jim Roth, Metropolitan Consortium of Community Developers*

Jorge Saavedra, The Saavedra Law Firm PLLC*Bill Sarvela, TCF National Bank

Andy Schlack, Greater Minnesota Housing FundTodd Sipe, Thrivent Financial Bank*

Mary Thompson, Headwaters Regional Development Commission

(Representing Minnesota Homeownership Center’s Advisory Council)

Joan Trahan, USDA Rural Development*Nicola Viana, Washington County HRA

(Representing Minnesota Homeownership Center’s Advisory Council)*

Stephanie Vergin, USDA Rural DevelopmentLowell Yost, Family Housing Fund*

* Term ended March, 2011

Foreclosure Prevention: Helping homeowners weather the reality of today’s home market

We strive to be proactive throughout the current foreclosure crisis and our foreclosure prevention services extend throughout all 87

counties of Minnesota. Counselors work closely with clients, building trust as they assess each individual’s situation and work with them to move forward.

In 2011, over 12,000 homeowners facing the threat of foreclosure were counseled within our Homeownership Advisors Network and 50% avoided foreclosure.

2011 highlights of foreclosure prevention services:

We developed an industry partnership with Fannie •Mae and Wells Fargo (through a national industry partner, Homeownership Partnership Network). This created a clearly-defined and streamlined process for consumers to apply for loss mitigation, as well as a single point of contact for counselors for all Fannie Mae cases. It also added a diversified funding source to support our programming.

The Emergency Homeowner Loan Program (EHLP) •brought a successful outreach campaign and a call center and dedicated website to respond to thousands of inquiries. Pre-applications were received from hundreds of Minnesota households.

We successfully leveraged local resources and •existing partnerships to preserve network capacity during a gap in federal funding.

We received additional funding to support an •innovative program to help households obtain long-term stable housing after experiencing foreclosure. 87% of households remained continually housed one year later.

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Statement of Financial Position

Current assets Cash and cash equivalents $2,400,803 Accounts receivable 187,643 Contributions receivable 402,742 Prepaid expenses 3,119 Security deposit 700 Inventory 18,605 Total current assets 3,013,612

Property and equipment - net 114,078

Total assets 3,127,690 Liabilities and Net Assets Current liabilities: Accounts payable 236,123 Due to HECAT 250,000 Accrued expenses 46,992 Funds held for others 13,655 Capital lease - short term 3,623 Total current liabilities 550,393

Non-current liabilities: Capital lease - long term 1,886

Total liabilities 552,279 Net assets: Unrestricted: Undesignated 1,304,355 Board designated: Mortgage foreclosure prevention loan pool 196,580 Reserves 209,027 Total board designated 405,607 Total unrestricted 1,709,962

Temporarily restricted 865,449

Total net assets 2,575,411

Total liabilities and net assets 3,127,690

Statement of Activities

Support and revenue Contributions $1,225,885 Grants and contracts 1,804,997 Loan repayments 16,186 Sales of workshop manuals 31,278 In-kind contribution 59,194 Interest 7,460 Other 30,486

Subtotal 3,175,486

Net assets released from restrictions -0-

Total support and revenue 3,175,486 Expenses Program services 2,684,151 Management and general 149,685 Fundraising 38,511

Total expenses 2,872,347

Change in net assets 303,139

Net assets - beginning of year 2,272,272

Net assets - end of year 2,575,411

Financial Statement

Grants & Contracts56.8%

Contributions38.6%

Other4.6%

Fundraising1%

Program Delivery94%

Administration5%

Revenue

Expenses