Message from the

Board President

 

 

 

 

                                                     Lori  Miller                                           

 

All of us at Neighborhood Housing Services of Jamaica, from staff and board to donors and partners, share the belief that the American Dream is to live in a society where everyone has the ability to get ahead by working hard.  Unfortunately, today it seems difficult for many Americans to simply get by. Neighborhood Housing Services was established in 1974 by individuals who believed the American Dream begins by creating stable, sustainable communities of homeowners.  In the 34 years that we have served the Southeast Queens community, we have partnered with public and private organizations to preserve and build affordable housing that strengthens the fabric of our community and improves the quality of life for residents.  NHSJ is one of the most respected non-profit housing organizations in the United States.  We have played a major role in increasing ‘responsible’ homeownership in our community through myriad programs such as pre- and post-purchase counseling that prepare people to purchase a home they can afford and keep their home in good repair.  The success of our programs is realized in the low default rates of homeowners who have successfully completed our programs.  We believe that, affordable communities are key to living the real American Dream.

 

Six years ago we began to notice a disturbing increase in the number of homeowners who were victims of predatory lending practices and created the Southeast Queens Predatory Lending Taskforce.  The taskforce brings together the resources of board, staff, legal counsel, and others to try and help the victims of deceptive and sometimes fraudulent lending practices keep their homes.   In 2007, the subprime lending crisis made headlines across the country.  The southeast Queens community leads the city in the prevalence of predatory, subprime loans.  Within months, we have witnessed the shift from furious building of new homes to properties where work has ceased and partially completed homes lie empty.  Twenty years ago, southeast Queens had large numbers of vacant and abandoned properties which were blight on the community.  NHS of Jamaica created its Vacant Homes Program to purchase and rehab houses that were then sold at affordable prices to first-time homebuyers.  After many years of working diligently to make our neighborhoods desirable places to live, they are again threatened by the overwhelming number of impending foreclosures and the vacancies that will result. 

 

NHS of Jamaica will continue to be innovative in its approach to addressing the needs of homeowners from pre-purchase through post-purchase and especially homeowners in distress.  We must all join together to influence government and lenders to come up with a viable solution to halt this crisis which threatens to undermine the stability of our neighborhoods, our cities and our nation.  This is what’s needed to ensure the American Dream.

 

Empowering People •Building Communities •Strengthening Southeast Queens Since 1974