COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION OF UTAH

Community Development Corporation of Utah (CDCU) is a 501 (c) (3) nonprofit organization that was founded in 1990 to provide relief for distressed neighborhoods in Salt Lake City. It has since expanded services throughout Utah. With a focus on making homeownership a reality, CDCU builds new single family homes, rehabilitates and preserves affordable housing, is a leading homeownership advising provider, and works to revitalize neighborhoods. CDCU’s programs include:

• Homeownership education and advisory services. CDCU is a HUD-approved housing counseling agency. CDCU works with prospective homeowners to improve their credit and budgeting practices, educates them on the costs and benefits of homeownership, and guides them through the home purchase process to ensure that the clients will be successful long-term homeowners. In several studies aggregated by HUD, homebuyer education and counseling has been shown to reduce the foreclosure rate by up to 28%.

• Foreclosure prevention counseling. Our HUD-certified advisors work with clients who are at risk of losing their homes. CDCU has an over 75% success rate in preventing foreclosure.

• Down payment assistance. CDCU administers down payment assistance programs for Salt Lake County, Taylorsville and Salt Lake City. This program provides between $5,000 and $15,000 as a non-interest bearing loan for qualifying borrowers to help defray closing costs and provide equity for first-time home buyers.

• Owner-occupied home repair. CDCU partners with Salt Lake County and other organizations to provide critical home repairs for low-income homeowners. The Green and Healthy Homes Initiative (GHHI) was established to provide low interest rate loans as well as grant funding to low- to moderate-income families in need of home repairs to either improve energy efficiency or to help alleviate health hazards in the home. Many LMI families whose homes are repaired through GHHI are able to remain in their homes because of the creation of healthier and safer environments for their families.

• HomeFit Mortgage program. CDCU provides an 80%/20% loan program that allows low- to moderate-income (LMI) families to obtain 100% loan-to-value financing on their home purchase or refinance. This loan program is less costly than the FHA loan program, requiring only 2% of borrower funds to pay for closing expenses and eliminating the requirement for mortgage insurance.

• Home acquisition and rehabilitation. CDCU acquires and rehabilitates dilapidated houses in low- to moderate-income neighborhoods, remediating them (if contaminated) from methamphetamine, radon and lead hazards. The homes are then resold to qualified LMI home buyers. This program not only provides affordable homeownership options to LMI families, but also revitalizes neighborhoods. The Salt Lake City Unified Police have reported an 80% reduction in neighborhood crime calls when CDCU rehabilitates and resells a home.

The target populations for CDCU’s programs are working poor families, disabled households, ethnic minorities, documented immigrants including refugees, law enforcement officers, firefighters and other emergency response professionals, school teachers, veterans, and others with special needs who could use a hand-up to achieve homeownership and safe, clean, and sustainable housing.