ACHANGE October 2012 Newsletter

Volume 2, Issue 6

OCTOBER 2012 1

Volume 2, Issue 6

IN THIS MONTH’S ISSUE

ACHANGE’S MISSION:

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Time for ACHANGE!

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Chairman’s Corner

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National Mortgage Settlement

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October Meeting Highlights

7 To collectively promote quality affordable housing and community 8 economic development in Arkansas. 9

News Coming Attractions Digital Resources

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Executive Committee/ Contact Info

HOW CONNECTED IS YOUR ORGANIZATION? LET US KNOW!

Complete a short online survey by clicking here!

The survey is still open! Tell us about your organization today!

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Volume 2, Issue 6

TIME FOR ACHANGE! I saw a commercial recently that, while funny, was quite true.

In the commercial, a group had put together a program featuring a renowned financial expert. The hope was that the expert would provide a clear road-map to the future for them. When asked if he could provide that answer, he gave a very simple answer: No. Wouldn’t it be nice if there were someone out there who could look into a crystal ball and tell you what the future holds for affordable housing? Unfortunately, there is no one who can do that.

Like other nonprofits organizations, especially in an election year, you look for the indicators that will help you make decisions. You are waiting for election results, for final rules, regulations and legislation. You are looking for the arrow that will point you in one direction or another.

Until then, you plan and you hope for the best.

The one thing that we are sure of is that people with low-to-moderate incomes need affordable housing, and the statistics all bear our how important this is to overall community/economic development and community stabilization.

In the coming months, ACHANGE will be rolling out some information that we hope will help your organization, especially those newer organizations, in their planning processes. The Education and Training Committee has been researching assessment tools, and now that one has been located, the search for funding begins.

Arkansas currently has no statewide certification system in place, and ACHANGE is making the initial steps to achieving one.

That’s why it time for ACHANGE.

Debra Banks, Program Manager

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Volume 2, Issue 6

CHAIRMAN’S CORNER Opportunity Cost for non-profit developers Opportunity cost is a term I had not heard until recently, but when I heard it, I immediately knew what it meant. I am all too familiar with the time and attention it takes to put a project together. You look down many avenues, have multiple meetings, and spend hours upon hours researching and crunching numbers before settling on just the right project. You hope that you are chasing after something that can eventually be caught, unlike a dog and its hopeless pursuit of its tail.

Then the real work begins. Unfortunately, once you start the project Karen Phillips many opportunities are passed over for lack of time. Split second decisions are made as I read through announcements for grant op- ACHANGE Board Chair portunities or as I scan emails that request proposals. You see, once you go down that road of pursuing a project, you want to make sure that all that previous time you invested reaps a reward: the finished project, clients in need receive the housing they needed, and the agency is finally paid for the time they spent or at least a portion of it.

We need to remember that opportunity cost is not a line item on a financial spreadsheet, but more a strategic planning piece. Opportunity cost is hard to measure because you can't just add up all the lost opportunities on one side of the balance and add up all of the opportunities you did take on the other side of the balance. The reason you can't do that is because when an opportunity arises, you cannot be sure that it will equal production or outcomes until you have actually invested time. Even the best laid plans can sometimes end without a payoff.

We, as nonprofit developers, could all do better thinking instead of just reacting. I would love to have a worksheet that measured opportunity cost, but it really isn’t realistic. Rather, each deal can be summed up in terms of work required and rewards possible and then gazed at through the rosy glasses of mission and stared at intently through the lenses of a small business trying to make ends meet.

Therefore, as you strategically think about opportunity costs when picking a project, ask yourself a few questions: Is the project worth passing over other opportunities? Does this project represent the best opportunity both in terms of mission and money for your non-profit? Is it highly likely that it will be successful? Without asking these questions, you may just be chasing your tail.

Karen 4

Volume 2, Issue 6

The National Mortgage Settlement

The agreement reached this year between 49 Attorneys General and the five largest banks in the United States resulted in the second largest settlement in U.S. history. Most states will be using the funding for housing-related activities. However, some states have chosen to spend none of the money on housing-related activities, and three states are still undecided as to how the money will be spent.

Currently, the breakdown of how the $2.5 Billion will be spent is:

Housing Non‐Housing Undecided

38% will be spent on housing activities 39% will be spent to prop up general funds and non-housing activities 23% is unallocated as of this date

State associations are still fighting for the rights of those who were most affected by this crisis. To read the details of the Enterprise Community Partners report, click here.

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Volume 2, Issue 6

October 9 2012, Meeting Highlights

There are FREE services available to non-profit organizations , courtesy of SCORE—the Service Core of Retired Executives. What can SCORE do for you? You can have access to online workshops, online mentoring, online templates and tools, low cost workshops and mentoring services that will help your organization succeed. Best of all, there is no cut-off on the amount of assistance that you can receive from these business experts.

To find out what SCORE can do for it, visit or call one of the two Arkansas offices: Little Rock SCORE 2120 Riverfront Drive Little Rock, AR 72202 501-325-7379 ext. 302 www.littlerock.score.org

Northwest Arkansas SCORE 614 E. Emma St., Room M-412 Springdale, AR 72764 800-646-0450 www.northwestarkansas.score.org

Funding may be available for your organization through the Arkansas Community Foundation. The Foundation makes grants through: doadvised grants, designated grants and unrestricted grants.

nor-

A program that might be of interest to ACHANGE members are the Giving Tree Grants.

“Through our signature Giving Tree Grant Program, ARCF supports a broad range of projects

with the potential for statewide impact and programs serving immediate local needs.

Each of our 27 local offices and our central office in Little Rock offers Giving Tree grants at least once a year. Typically, these grants are available for a wide variety of charitable causes; sometimes, though, we’ll choose to target a particular need (like hunger relief or childhood nutrition). Check with the local office to which you’re applying for information about the current grantmaking focus.” (ARCF, 2012) For more information, visit www.arcf.org.

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Volume 2, Issue 6

NEWS The Future for the American Housing Survey The American Housing Survey (AHS) will draw a new sample in 2015. This new sample will allow the update of geographic definitions, rebalance the representation of different housing types, allow for estimates at the Census Division and state level (for larger states), and relieve current respondents from a burden that some will have borne for as many as 28 years.

After considerable discussion within and between the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Census Bureau, we have identified a number of possible strategies. Briefly, the most prominent of these include: A single longitudinal panel--essentially the same as the current strategy.  A set of overlapping panels which would each stay in sample for ten years (5 surveys) and then cycle out.  A hybrid design, with a long-term longitudinal panel and a set of overlapping panels, as described above.

To download the full White Paper, click here. 

ACHANGE named one of NLIHC’s newest State Partners ACHANGE was recently invited, and accepted, as one of the National Low Income Housing Coalition’s newest state partner organizations. ACHANGE joins the growing list of other state and regional organizations that wish to strengthen both state and national advocacy efforts for affordable, decent housing.

CSCDCCAA is a member of the NeighborWorks® National Network!

Congratulations to Crawford-Sebastian County CDC in reaching this goal. It is not an easy task to accomplish but one that is well worth the effort. Congratulations to the entire staff!

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Volume 2, Issue 6

Free Community Stabilization eLearning Courses NeighborWorks is able to offer our community stabilization-related eLearning courses – a $195 value – free of charge until December 31, with support from FDIC. Choose from:       

REO Acquisition, Rehab, Disposition and Management, Fundamentals of Asset Management, Counseling Buyers of REO Properties (code: FDICHO260a), Counseling Clients Seeking Rental Housing, or Stabilizing Neighborhoods in a Post-Foreclosure Environment (code: FDICHO265a).

For the last two courses, enter the FDIC code; for the others simply select your course, and the tuition that will appear is $0. The courses may count toward a professional certificate.

Learn more.

You are invited to attend the 2012 Housing and Community Development Appreciation Lunch on November 15th from 11:00 to 1:00 at IC Parrish, 22 N 13th St, Fort Smith. This is by invitation only and you must RSVP no later than November 9th to attend. Who is invited? Realtors, builders, developers, lenders, partners, philanthropic reps, government reps, education and small business reps, and community organizers/representatives. Please call 785-2303 extension 125 to RSVP or email slowe@cscdccaa.org 8

Volume 2, Issue 6

DIGITAL RESOURCES FOR HOUSING PROFESSIONALS Highlighting the tools that can help you succeed in the digital age

Animoto You can now turn your photos into great videos in a short time with no special training. Choose your pictures, video clips, music and style, and in minutes, you have a video worth sharing. 30 second videos are free!

Here’s a sample clip: http://animoto.com/play/AASsbNPtTlcxmas0xTuv5w

Xtranormal Animation more your style? Use Xtranormal to create short text-to-voice videos for your organization. The first one is free, but you can pay for extra space after that.

Sample clip: http://www.xtranormal.com/watch/13836872/registertoday-for-2012-acds-annual-conference HUD CFR Title 24 Want to keep up-to-date on the Title 24 regulations?

There’s an app for that! At $29.99, it’s a bit pricey, but it beats carrying the book around!

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Volume 2, Issue 6

ACHANGE Executive Committee Board Chairman—Karen Phillips 1st Vice Chairman—Susan Forte 2nd Vice Chairman—George Holcomb Secretary— Frances Newsome Treasurer—Cathy Carlock Associate At-Large Board Member—Martie North At-Large Board Member—Darryl Swinton Program Manager—Debra Banks Committee Chairs Education and Training Committee Chairman—Roma Isom Finance Committee Chairman—Cathy Carlock Membership & Marketing Committee Chairman—George Holcomb Public Policy Committee Chairman—Darryl Swinton Resource Development Chairman—Charles Vann Ad-hoc Committee Chairman—Martie North

At ACHANGE, your membership matters.

Come grow along with us!

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401 Main Street, Suite 206 North Little Rock, AR 72114 501-766-3941 Fax: 501-244-9670

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