NOPD
07-20-2006, 07:36 PM
Housing help offered to police, firefighters
Foundation hopes to keep them here
Thursday, July 20, 2006
By Susan Langenhennig
Close to 80 percent of New Orleans police and firefighters lost their homes or had significant damage to their houses during Hurricane Katrina.
With such a large number of the city's first responders faced with precarious housing situations, the New Orleans Police and Justice Foundation Inc. has launched programs to help firefighters and police officers buy, remodel or build homes.
Without such assistance, the city runs the risk of losing many of its trained first responders, Robert Stellingworth, president and chief executive officer of the foundation, told the Kiwanis Club of Algiers Morning Edition last week.
"If their family is in Houston because their house is destroyed, and they're working here, it's not going to be long before they move to Houston," Stellingworth said at the meeting. "We've also had a lot of officers leave because they are highly valued because of their training and experience with the NOPD. We knew we had to do something to keep our officers here."
The foundation, a nonprofit organization founded in 1995, created three housing programs that so far have helped more than 250 first responders, for a total cost of $1.2 million, Stellingworth said.
The foundation worked with the state to get New Orleans police and firefighters included in programs to help first-time homebuyers.
"That gives them lower interest rates, no money down and minimal closing costs," he said.
The foundation also created a direct mortgage subsidy program that pays up to $8,000 to first responders when they close on a new house or on a second mortgage to help pay for repairs to their existing home.
"When you close your loan at any bank you choose, we'll give you 4 percent on the first $150,000 and 2 percent for the next $100,000, to be used for closing costs," Stellingworth said. "It's a direct payment at the time of your closing."
"The third option," Stellingworth said, "is for people who already purchased homes. If you show us that you already bought a house, you'll get a check for 4 percent of the first $100,000" value of the house.
Shell, Chevron and Baptist Community Ministries provided the bulk of the money for the foundation's housing programs, he said, but added that "Dr. Phil (McGraw) gave us $50,000 and there also were other significant contributors."
The foundation, which is working with Mayor Ray Nagin's office on reforms of the criminal justice system, would like to institute a rental assistance program for first responders, but "we don't have the funding right now," he said.
Stellingworth pointed out that 96 percent of the money donated to the foundation's Katrina relief efforts "has gone directly back to first responders. We're not paying our salaries out of this money."
To learn more about the New Orleans Police and Justice Foundation, visit www.nopjf.org.
. . . . . . .
Susan Langenhennig can be reached at slangenhennig@timespicayune.com or at 504-826-3782.
Anybody know anybody that got a piece of this $1.2 million ??
Comments on the Foundation ?
Foundation hopes to keep them here
Thursday, July 20, 2006
By Susan Langenhennig
Close to 80 percent of New Orleans police and firefighters lost their homes or had significant damage to their houses during Hurricane Katrina.
With such a large number of the city's first responders faced with precarious housing situations, the New Orleans Police and Justice Foundation Inc. has launched programs to help firefighters and police officers buy, remodel or build homes.
Without such assistance, the city runs the risk of losing many of its trained first responders, Robert Stellingworth, president and chief executive officer of the foundation, told the Kiwanis Club of Algiers Morning Edition last week.
"If their family is in Houston because their house is destroyed, and they're working here, it's not going to be long before they move to Houston," Stellingworth said at the meeting. "We've also had a lot of officers leave because they are highly valued because of their training and experience with the NOPD. We knew we had to do something to keep our officers here."
The foundation, a nonprofit organization founded in 1995, created three housing programs that so far have helped more than 250 first responders, for a total cost of $1.2 million, Stellingworth said.
The foundation worked with the state to get New Orleans police and firefighters included in programs to help first-time homebuyers.
"That gives them lower interest rates, no money down and minimal closing costs," he said.
The foundation also created a direct mortgage subsidy program that pays up to $8,000 to first responders when they close on a new house or on a second mortgage to help pay for repairs to their existing home.
"When you close your loan at any bank you choose, we'll give you 4 percent on the first $150,000 and 2 percent for the next $100,000, to be used for closing costs," Stellingworth said. "It's a direct payment at the time of your closing."
"The third option," Stellingworth said, "is for people who already purchased homes. If you show us that you already bought a house, you'll get a check for 4 percent of the first $100,000" value of the house.
Shell, Chevron and Baptist Community Ministries provided the bulk of the money for the foundation's housing programs, he said, but added that "Dr. Phil (McGraw) gave us $50,000 and there also were other significant contributors."
The foundation, which is working with Mayor Ray Nagin's office on reforms of the criminal justice system, would like to institute a rental assistance program for first responders, but "we don't have the funding right now," he said.
Stellingworth pointed out that 96 percent of the money donated to the foundation's Katrina relief efforts "has gone directly back to first responders. We're not paying our salaries out of this money."
To learn more about the New Orleans Police and Justice Foundation, visit www.nopjf.org.
. . . . . . .
Susan Langenhennig can be reached at slangenhennig@timespicayune.com or at 504-826-3782.
Anybody know anybody that got a piece of this $1.2 million ??
Comments on the Foundation ?