National Congress of American Indians Receives $200,000 For Homebuyer Education in Indian Country

6/5/2002

From: Liz Hill of the National Congress of American Indians, 202-466-7767

WASHINGTON, June 5 -- More than 1,000 Native Americans families will obtain access to first-time homebuyer education through a $200,000 grant awarded today to the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI).

Several funding partners announced the grant as a kick off to National Homeownership Month. Fannie Mae Foundation, The Enterprise Foundation and the Ford Foundation each awarded NCAI $50,000. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation (NRC) Home Ownership Campaign each contributed $25,000.

The funding will support a national homebuyer education initiative, which will include course materials and instructor training specifically designed for Indian Country. The curriculum will be based on selected tribal and community programs and will serve as a national model that can be tailored for local or regional needs.

NCAI and its partners will convene a review committee of Indian housing practitioners to draft the materials during the summer months and will launch the pilot materials this fall in two locations - on the Nez Perce Indian reservation in Idaho and among a group of pueblos in New Mexico. The pilots will recruit a local trainer to deliver the materials to potential homebuyers.

The pilot project also allows for a testing period, with participating Native American homebuyers offering critical feedback about the content and presentation. The partners will then make revisions to the materials to ensure they are effective for the target population. NCAI, NRC, HUD's Office of Native American Programs and other national Native American organizations, such as the National American Indian Housing Council and the First Nations Development Institute will deliver instructor workshops. In addition, the partners will help to organize and support training sessions in tribal communities and with regional Indian housing associations, as requested.

Homeownership projects like this initiative are especially important in Indian Country. The more than 2.4 million Native Americans living on or near tribal lands face among the most severe housing and economic distress in the country: more than one-third of Native Americans live in poverty, and more than 40 percent of tribal homes are overcrowded or are in substandard condition. Yet, mortgages to enable homeownership are difficult to come by. Fewer than 2,000 mortgages have ever been closed on tribal lands.

"NCAI is very excited to enter into partnership with these organizations to address one of the most important issues in Indian Country," said NCAI executive director Jacqueline L. Johnson. "Homeownership is one of the first steps we must take in order to build healthy and vibrant communities; this initiative marks the beginning of that journey; and we look forward to bringing the tribes the resources to make home ownership a reality."

"With homeownership rates in the Native American community lagging behind the rest of the country, we are pleased to work with NCAI to create a national homeownership education curriculum that tribes can use in their communities to help potential buyers achieve the dream of homeownership," said Stacey H. Davis, president and CEO of the Fannie Mae Foundation. "Our goal is for this curriculum, coupled with housing and economic research the Foundation is already doing in this area, to help strengthen Native communities through homeownership."

"In addition to working with our national partners, Enterprise is looking forward to teaming up with the New Mexico Mortgage Finance Authority (MFA) to help facilitate the pueblo pilot site," said Deborah Webster, Manager of The Enterprise Foundation's Native American Program. "MFA recognizes the benefit of working to integrate a national homebuyer education initiative into local tribal communities."

"The fastest-growing segment of the national NeighborWorks(r) network is in rural areas, where we serve several Indian communities," said Ellen Lazar, executive director of Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation. "Our partnership with NCAI enables us to continue expanding our affiliations with American Indian communities and helping those families achieve homeownership."

Founded in 1944, the National Congress of American Indians is the country's oldest, largest and most representative national American Indian and Alaska Native organization. NCAI advocates for more than 250 tribal governments with the federal government and the Congress, promoting strong tribal-federal "government-to-government" policy and promoting a better understanding among the general public regarding American Indian and Alaska Native governments, people and rights. For more information about NCAI, visit http://www.ncai.org.