Foundation Helps Address Workforce Housing Issues for New Jersey’s Working Families
Edison, N.J. – January 25, 2010 – (RealEstateRama) — The New Jersey Association of REALTORS® Housing Opportunity Foundation, Inc. (NJARHOF) is partnering with the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) and select lenders and nonprofit housing organizations to increase homeownership opportunities for working families throughout New Jersey through NAR’s Employer-Assisted Housing (EAH) class.
NJARHOF held a four-hour EAH class on Friday, January 22nd at the Crowne Plaza in Edison, N.J. Twenty-five real estate professionals attended the training, which encourages and trains REALTORS® and industry practitioners to work with local employers to discuss and implement employer-assisted housing benefits for their employees. EAH benefits can include one-on-one housing counseling; financial assistance; or workshops for home buyers or owners, including foreclosure prevention workshops.
Working a full-time job today does not guarantee a family a decent, affordable place to live. Much of America’s workforce, including individuals that provide vital community services – teachers, firefighters, police officers and health workers – often cannot afford to live in the communities where they work. The shortage of affordable housing choices close to where families work, can lead to longer commutes, sprawl and traffic congestion, which degrades the quality of life for all residents.
“Through NAR’s Employer-Assisted Housing class, REALTORS® are playing an important leadership role in building communities and addressing the lack of affordable housing opportunities for working families around the state,” said NJARHOF President Christina Clemans. “This program provides the groundwork for real estate professionals to partner with local business owners for the benefit of their employees and the community at large.”
The EAH class, hosted by NJARHOF and NAR, teaches attendees how to reach out to employers to conduct home buyer and homeownership workshops at the employer’s place of business either alone or with a lender or housing nonprofit organization; to create relationships with local housing nonprofit organizations who can offer counseling to employees; and to review with the employer the variety of financial assistance options that they can offer to their employees to purchase a home including grants, loans and matching savings. Businesses can choose to offer their employees one or all of these benefits or develop their own customized EAH plans.
EAH benefits can help employers meet important business goals in addition to helping employees achieve the American dream of homeownership. The benefits can also help increase employee loyalty and morale, enhance employee-employer relationships, help recruit and retain valuable employees, revitalize neighborhoods and strengthen communities by increasing homeownership rates.
The New Jersey Association of REALTORS® Housing Opportunity Foundation, Inc. (NJARHOF) is a 501 (c) (3) charitable organization that seeks to create greater homeownership opportunities for New Jersey residents. The Foundation raises funds for housing opportunity and distributes these funds to other 501 (c) (3) organizations throughout the state that provide home buyer education, develop public awareness and create affordable homeownership options for New Jerseyans. For more information, please visit www.njar.com/njarhof.
NAR’s Housing Opportunity Program, www.realtor.org/housingopportunity, was created in 2002 to provide REALTORS® with the tools and resources they need to promote housing opportunities in their community, in both the rental and homeownership sectors of the market. The program encourages local REALTOR® associations to create initiatives aimed directly at increasing housing opportunities available to consumers and making affordable housing more readily available in their communities. The EAH class is one such initiative.
