Collier Community Foundation Invests in The Housing Alliance Initiatives

EKOS-Allegro Grand Opening. Chris Shear, Collier County Commissioners Dan Kowal and Chris Hall, W Patrick McDowell, Collier County Commissioner Rick Locastro, Ryan Benson, Florida House Representative Yvette Benarroch, and Michael Puchalla.

Posted Wednesday, December 25, 2024 7:00 pm

Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

Submitted

The Housing Alliance, a new non-profit organization formed to provide information, education and advocacy for accessing and developing attainable housing solutions in Collier County, announced that it has been awarded nearly $96,000 in grants from the Collier Community Foundation (CCF) to further its ongoing housing initiatives.

The CCF funding was allocated in three unique grants to support workforce housing stabilization, the Housing Navigator program and fundraising consulting services.

$50,000 community impact grant was awarded to create a Workforce Housing Stabilization Loan Fund program. The program provides funds to members of the local workforce who are experiencing housing instability. Funds may be used to cover rent or move-in costs to secure an affordable rental based on an evaluation of credit and current financial household circumstances. Funding is provided in the form of a short-term, interest-free loan.

$30,000 program grant was awarded to The Housing Alliance’s affiliate, HELP, to support its Housing Navigator Program. The program simplifies the homebuying process by providing accessible, practical resources for home buyer education and pre-purchase counseling to individuals and couples to increase their knowledge and skills in money management. Through the program, HUD-certified, bilingual financial counselors offer individual support to make the homebuying process easier by connecting participants to resources to secure affordable rental housing, tools to save for home ownership, and steps to qualify for a mortgage. The Housing Alliance leverages its community relationships and experience working with local lenders, non-profits and the County offering specialized programs for low-to-moderate income households.

$15,750 community impact grant was awarded to engage with a professional fundraising consultant to develop a comprehensive fundraising strategy. The services will include a case for support, an annual appeals campaign, strategic planning, as well as board and committee development and engagement.

CCF has been leading the way to improve housing affordability after it commissioned the Collier County Community Needs Assessment, sponsored by the Richard M. Schulze Family Foundation and CCF, in 2023 and it showed that 65% of respondents cited affordable and workforce housing as the county’s #1 priority, up from 45% five years earlier. As a result, CCF has made housing affordability a top priority for its funding initiatives and played a key role in advocating for the creation of The Housing Alliance because they recognized the need to unite key stakeholders and community members to form a housing hub for information, education, and resources surrounding workforce housing in Collier County. 

Keywords

workforce housing, fundraising, housing, finance, economy, loan, business, debt, affordable housing, financial services, social issues, credit, mortgage, personal finance, education, money, real estate, loans, real property law, business economics, liability (financial accounting), residential buildings, urban, rural, and regional economics, banking, nonprofit organization, demand for money, politics, private sector, living arrangements, strategic planning, economy of the united states, investment banking, distribution of wealth, organization, corporate finance, management, family economics, economic inequality, economic problems, investment, investment management, community, financial economics, owner-occupancy, home, social inequality, wealth, united states, income, public sphere, evaluation, monetary economics, consultant, retail financial services, political economy, private law, service industries, financial management, contract law, hierarchy, organizational theory, society of the united states, leasehold estate, information, ownership, financial accounting, social status, corporations, social economy, social psychology, workforce, buildings and structures, assistance, health, property, asset management, business law, creditor, balance sheet, experience, economies, humanitarian aid, economic law, knowledge, activism, trade, financial law, property law, poverty, entities, philanthropy, business ownership, law and economics, land law, social influence, natural resources law, financial markets, macroeconomics, collier county, florida, advocacy, leadership, issues in ethics, social and solidarity economy, justice, common law, public policy, employment, personal development, environmental social science, branches of science, government, social programs, service retailing, mortgage industry of the united states, change, cognition, technology, charity, inequality, planning, primate behavior, united states housing bubble, human communication, great recession, public economics, culture, management cybernetics, standard of living, public services, strategic management, determinants of health, microeconomics, architecture, labor, welfare, corporate jargon, market (economics), altruism, world economy, public administration, business ethics, economics, liberal arts education, economy of north america, virtue, business management, sociology of work, financial crises, civil law (common law), environmental law, political science, behavioural sciences, labor relations, cognitive science, economic development, right to housing, control (social and political), social movements, health care, management science, human rights, learning, economic crises, industries (economics), communication theory, organizational behavior, social policy, real estate bubbles, collier news, swfl, collier county, marco news, marco island, marco island florida, coastal breeze news, naples area, naples