Homeownership Fair in New York City a Big Success:
Making the Connection Between Learning and Actual Homeownership

HUD's New York City office was asked in May to assist in the planning of a homebuyers fair for the members of the largest New York City municipal workers union - DC 37. The event took place on June 28 at DC 37's facilities and was extremely well attended by DC 37's own union membership as well as by members of the New York City Police and Fire Department employee unions.

HUD staff explaining homeownership opportunities to members of the NY municipal workers' union.

The goal of the fair was to outline to the members of DC 37 the many homeownership opportunities that are open to them. DC 37 already had a large number of members that had been receiving housing counseling and homeownership education during the last year and many have been pre-qualified to purchase their first property. What was lacking for some, however, was the next step to make that education a reality. The fair provided a great opportunity for HUD and it's approved counseling agencies to outline some of the many homeownership programs that are active in the area, to present the specific advantages of the FHA mortgage insurance programs, and to connect the union members with actual opportunities. By doing this, the next steps toward homeownership were made that much more real.

DC 37 has had for some time affiliations with many mortgage lenders that would be available to assist its members. What they were lacking however was an inventory of homes for their members to buy. That's where HUD took a major role in providing access to real estate agents, non-profits & for-profits that have available inventory.

In planning the event, HUD reached out to a number of business partners and other local organization that would be able to provide potential lists of available homes. These connections were essential. Some of the key participants included the 27 non-profit & for-profit developers that are actively involved in the redevelopment and disposition of numerous former HUD/FHA 203(k) properties that are covered by a special agreement (MOU) between HUD and the New York City Department of Housing, Preservation, and Development (HPD); the members of the National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals; and numerous other non-profits and real estate agents that were known to have available housing inventory.