September Housing Hangout
While housing sales have remained solid throughout COVID19 with low interest rates, high demand, and strong prices, there are signs that underlying issues exist in the market. Before COVID19 (and the moratorium on foreclosures), only 3.2% of mortgages were in delinquency. By May, that number had more than doubled (7.8%) and is predicted to continue rising. About one-in-ten homes (4.7 million mortgages) are in forbearance offering some protection from a foreclosure crisis. In the rental market, the eviction moratoriums and CARES Act protections have all now expired. According to reports, as many as 40 million renters are at risk of eviction and homelessness. Some analysts predict that we are heading toward another housing crisis like 2009. This panel of experts from National League of Cities, the Center for Community Progress, the ReInvestment Fund, and Fannie Mae will discuss the state of our nation’s housing market for renters and homeowners and explore the various efforts to address foreclosures, evictions, homelessness, and housing insecurity impacting millions.
Sidra Goldwater, Advisor, Disaster Response & Rebuild, Chief Administrative Office, Fannie Mae
Sidra Goldwater is responsible for developing and implementing policies and strategies related to the servicing of mortgage loans, enabling Fannie Mae to mitigate and manage credit losses while preserving homeownership. In her current corporate wide role (both single family and and multifamily) she works with communities to recover from natural disasters which now includes the impact of COVID-19. Prior to her position at Fannie Mae, she managed a Management Information System used to underwrite and track the progress of multi-family FHA-insured mortgage originations, servicing and renewal of project based Section 8 contracts at HUD.
Robert Finn, Director of Policy and Research, Center for Community Progress
Robert Finn oversees the development and management of an active policy advocacy program focused on the development of new policy responses to vacancy and abandonment at the state and federal levels. A native of Jersey City, New Jersey, Rob practiced law with a diverse litigation portfolio that included landlord-tenant, employment, civil rights and complex commercial litigation, as well as extensive appellate experience at the State and Federal levels.
COMMUNITY PROGRESS PRESENTATION
Lauren Lowery, Program Director, Housing and Community Development, Center for City Solutions, National League of Cities
Lauren Lowery is an award-winning, public administrator with a background in municipal government, housing, community development, community engagement and outreach, public policy, intergovernmental relations and storytelling, who is always looking to problem-solve through human-centered design. Prior to joining the National League of Cities, she has worked for Habitat for Humanity, the City of Chattanooga, and the City of Norfolk in various economic and community development roles.
Emily Dowdall, Policy Director, Reinvestment Fund
Emily Dowdall oversees a team of mixed-methods researchers and helps clients apply research results in making data-driven programming and investment decisions. Recent projects include the development of neighborhood investment strategies for Pittsburgh and Indianapolis, residential market studies in New Orleans and Richmond, VA, and a blight remediation plan for Northampton County, PA. She oversees technical assistance provided to community-based organizations engaged in comprehensive neighborhood planning efforts and is facilitating a multiyear analysis of evictions in Philadelphia. Prior to joining the Reinvestment Fund, she spent five years leading research efforts on critical issues facing Philadelphia and other cities for the Pew Charitable Trusts, producing major reports on topics including gentrification and neighborhood change, the role of public libraries in big cities, property taxes, and school building closures and reuse.
REINVESTMENT FUND PRESENTATION #1
Jennifer Fassbender, Director of Program Initiatives, Reinvestment Fund
Jennifer Fassbender is responsible for the overall management of the Invest Health and the Building Healthier, More Equitable Communities (BHEC) initiatives which aim to improve the social determinants of health through changes in the built environment and the community investment system in small to mid-sized cities. Ms. Fassbender provides leadership in the program development, delivery and quality control components for the initiatives and engages with external stakeholders on strategic partnerships. Jennifer represents Reinvestment Fund on the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine’s Roundtable on Obesity Solutions where she is vice-chair of its Healthcare/Community Integration innovation collaborative, and has co-authored numerous scientific publications.
REINVESTMENT FUND PRESENTATION #1
Links Referenced in the Chat
- https://capmrkt.fanniemae.com/portal/jsp/mbs/documents/mbs/trustindentures/index.html
- https://www.communityprogress.net/land-banking-faq-pages-449.php
- https://uncg.maps.arcgis.com/apps/View/index.html?appid=ad0b2e5be3704d63a0634f6005131de3
- https://www.urban.org/sites/default/files/publication/102473/housing-for-north-carolinas-future_0.pdf
- http://www.bcbsncfoundation.org/news-insights/publications/
- https://covid19.nlc.org/
- https://citiesspeak.org/2020/08/03/cares-act-coronavirus-relief-fund-not-enough-to-support-local-government-reopening-and-recovery/
- https://www.nhlp.org/https://www.nhlp.org/campaign/protecting-renter-and-homeowner-rights-during-our-national-health-crisis-2/
- https://www.nhlp.org/wp-content/uploads/CDC-Eviction-Analysis.pdf
- https://www.consumerfinance.gov/coronavirus/mortgage-and-housing-assistance/
- https://www.providenceri.gov/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/community_engagement_to_ownership_-_tools_and_case_studies_final-1.pdf
- https://www.policymap.com/2020/05/policymap-covid19-quick-maps/
- https://www.communityprogress.net/community-revitalization-fellowship-pages-541.php
- https://www.urban.org/sites/default/files/publication/102473/housing-for-north-carolinas-future_0.pdf
- https://www.cityofrochester.gov/article.aspx?id=21474838821
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