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1 he P ortland O bserver • J anuary 17 1996
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Northeast Community Development Corporation Organization Protile
N ortheast C om m unity D evelop­
ment Corporation (N EC D C ) is a non­
profit tax exem pt 5 0 1 (c)(3 )co m m u -
nity-based organization founded in
1984 by four m em bers o f the A fri­
can-A m erican com m unity o f N orth­
east Portland. N E C D C ’s m ission is
to im prove the quality o f life for the
culturally diverse population o f in­
ner N orth/N ortheast Portland through
com m unity developm ent activities.
O ur original focus was jo b training,
and our efforts centered on a pre­
apprenticeship jo b program in car­
pentry. In Septem ber o f 1988 we
shifted our focus from jo b training to
developm ent o f affordable housing.
In 1990 N ECD C was chosen by
H U D to adm inister a $3.75 million
N ehem iah H ousing O pportunities
G rant. T he N ehem iah legislation,
w hich had broad political support,
w as based on the p rin cip le that
hom eow ners, because they have a
personal investm ent in their homes,
have a greater com m itm ent to the
w ell-being o f the com m unity. The
N ehem iah program seeks to benefit
both the hom e buyer and the neigh­
borhood. The hom e buyer gets an
opportunity to purchase a hom e they
could not oth erw ise affo rd . The
neighborhood benefits from an in­
crease in the percentage o f ow ner-
occupied hom es and the supply o f
affordable housing, stabilized prop­
erty values, and residents w ho are
m ore involved in their com m unity.
Q ualified buyers have stable work
histories and enough incom e to cov­
er a m onthly paym ent, but have not
been able to accum ulate the cash
needed to buy a home. U nder the
N ehem iah program the federal gov­
ernm ent provides $15,000 tow ard
the purchase price o f the home, se­
cured by a second m ortgage, with no
interest and no m onthly paym ents,
repayable when the hom e sells With
this as leverage, N ECD C, and our
partners in the com m unity, have ad d ­
ed other elem ents to a package which
enables a qualified buyer to purchase
a home at an affordable price and
with minimal cash. Those elem ents
include: A first m ortgage provided at
below m arket rates by private lend­
ers, underw ritten by State o f O regon
bond financing; tax-foreclosed lots
contributed by M ultnom ah County
at no cost; construction loans provid­
ed by a consortium o f local banks,
assisted by a revolving loan fund
from the City o f Portland; grants
from the Federal Home Loan Bank
ofSeattle to reduce the required down
payment; and contributions by the
City o fP o rtlan d , private foundations
and local businesses tow ard N ECD C
operating expenses.
N ECD C is the central agency ad ­
m inistering the N ehem iah program
and developing the properties. O ur
efforts are targeted in four inner North
and N ortheast Portland neighbor­
hoods: Boise, H um boldt, K ing and
Vernon. T he program has been a
great success. By 1994 we w ere able
to build 40 homes, a rate which we
expect to cont inue through 1995. O ur
goal is to build 60 hom es in 1996. As
a result o f our efforts:
• The percentage o f low er incom e
hom eowners in NE Portland has in­
creased.
• Local lenders have m ade a co m ­
mitment to invest in neighborhoods
they historically avoided, providing
a stim ulus for the local econom y.
• There has been $ 15 m illion o f new
construction and renovation in d e­
pressed neighborhoods.
• Thirty-five local contractors have
w orked on N E C D C p ro jec ts, o f
whom 31 w ere ow ned o r operated by
m inorities.
• Property values have risen, and
com m unity pride has grown.
• Local resident have been em pow ­
ered through participation in NECDC
activities, through public com m ent
and discussion and as volunteers,
em ployees and contractors.
N E C D C ’s activities have been
highly visible, and have encouraged
individuals and other organizations
to und ertak e ad d itio n al p ro jects,
w hich have added to the continuing
revitalization o f the com m unity.
The results o f our work have been
frequently recognized locally, and we
have also received national recogni­
tion. In 1993 the National Association
o f Home Builders named NECDC the
winner o f their Best Affordable First
Time Home Buyer award. Our homes
were featured in Better Homes and
Gardens magazine We received a
meritorious Award from the Associa­
tion o f Local Housing Finance Agen­
cies, and most recently, NECDC, with
First Interstate Bank, was a finalist in
the Social Compact OutstandingCom -
munity Investment competition
O ur success to date dem onstrates
the effectiveness o f our approach,
but much more rem ains to be done.
O ur targeted neighborhoods remain
am ong the most depressed in Port­
land, and it is critically im portant
that the good work we have started be
continued.
MORTGAGE RATES THE LOWEST IN 23 MONTHS
Forthe past six months, Ed Ellsasser
has watched mortgage interest rates
like a nervous tiger waiting to pounce.
When he bought his Tampa home a
year ago, he took on a 9.375 percent
mortgage to pay for it.
December, he said.
“ It’s am azing,” Rahall said. “The
whole industry is very excited about
it.”
Mortgage rates are so low right now
because the bond market has been
Ever since, he has been hoping to
refinance to save money. Thursday,
Ellsasser finally pounced. He agreed
to refinance his home with a 7.25
percent, 30-year mortgage through
M arket Street M ortgage Corp, in
Clearwater.
“It’s going to get me down to where
I’m saving 90 bucks a month,” Ellsasser
said.
For people like Ellsasser looking
for new mortgages, the world is a
pretty cool place right now.
Thirty-year mortgages dropped to
an average 7.02 percent nationally last
week, according to the Federal Home
Loan Mortgage Corp. That figure,
down from 7.11 percent the previous
week, was the lowest level in 23
months.
In Tampa Bay, rates are even better.
At least three mortgage brokerage com-
panies were planning to offer 30-year
fixed-rate mortgages for 7 percent to­
day, according to National Financial
News Services. And the mortgages
come with no points — fees that some
brokers charge that are equal to 1
percent o f a loan’s principal.
“Tampa Bay is probably one o f the
hottest areas in the country,” said
Patrick McW hirter, spokesman for
National Financial News. “ With so
many brokers in that area, it’s very
competitive, and as a result rates are
dropping faster there than almost any
other place in the country.”
National Financial News, based in
West Chester, Pa., provides the Times
with the best mortgage rates in Tampa
Bay each day, based on information
that some local mortgage brokers vol­
untarily supply.
St. Petersburg mortgage broker Ri­
chard Rahal I is one ofthe people offer­
ing 7 percent mortgages today.
Rahall said he had his busiest De-
cem bersince 1993. His com pany orig­
inated 30 mortgages last month, about
triple the number it usually does in
strong. Mortgage rates are tied to the
yield on 30-year bonds, which slipped
below 6 percent on W ednesday forthe
first time since 1993.
M ortgage rates are especially im­
portant in places like Tampa Bay, which
is one o f the biggest housing markets
in a state that leads the nation in new
home sales.
How low will rates go? T hat’s a
matter o f predicting the future. And
everybody has different opinions.
Bond yields inched up slightly
Thursday after traders interpreted the
stal led federal budget talks as bad news.
That could mean mortgage rates might
bump up a bit, too.
Rahall, for one, is thinking rates
will go lower, however. “ I’m suggest­
ing for people to float,” Rahall said. “I
just think they’ll be able to do even
better.”
Randy Johnson, chairman o f Mar­
ket Street M ortgage, disagrees. “ We
just don’t think it’s going to go a whole
lot lower than this,” Johnson said.
Keith Gumbinger, spokesman for
rate tracking company HSH Associ­
ates in Butler, N . J ., said even if rates do
go lower, he doubts they will go much
lower.
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“ I think rates are really even lower
now than they realistically ought to
be,” Gumbinger said. “ If they do im­
prove, it’s probably not going to im­
prove by enough to warrant waiting
around. “ I wouldn’t wait,” he said.
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