Housing Counseling & Foreclosure Prevention
Our Housing Counseling department provides a full range of services and advice to housing consumers across in order to increase the number of homeowners and tenants by assisting them to purchase, rent and maintain affordable housing. The program also offers homebuyer education workshops both in English and Spanish and assistance with financial wealth. We have partnered with banks to assist our clients to establish or re-establish credit, giving them financial power to increase their income and savings.
On a daily basis, we receive multiple requests that contain the words, “I need help! I’m behind on my mortgage!” Or, “I’m behind on my rent, I’m about to be evicted. Can you help me?” And our Housing Team works with every situation that comes through our door.
It’s no easy task. People sometimes arrive with their emotions taut, expectant of a miracle and not understanding the ladies of our Housing Department are not just going to hand them a check to cover the past due bills, but take them through an exploration of their finances and help them to find holes in their budget so they won’t become repeat Foreclosure or Rental Assistance clients.
Beyond helping people maintain their current housing, our Housing Team also prepares people who are ready to purchase their first home. They educate their clients to make sure they fully understand the homebuying process, making sure they have enough funds for their down payment, to selecting a mortgage, making sure their credit is clear (and encouraging them not to do anything to damage it during the purchasing process), to making sure they’re realistic about how much house their budget can buy. Prior to COVID they hosted monthly in-house Pre-Purchase Workshops for anyone looking for information on how to prepare for buying a home. Currently, our Empowerment Center hosts periodic Homebuying Workshops, virtually, that anyone can attend. UPDATE! 04/21/2021: Our Housing Department now had a virtual portal for First Time Homebuyer Workshops! You can take the workshop with each on YOUR schedule and at YOUR pace! The link is here: www.ehomeamerica.org/nhse
So, if you need assistance because you are behind on your rent, facing foreclosure, or you think you’re ready to purchase your first home, our Housing Department is ready to help you! You can reach us by calling our Southbridge Wilmington Office at 302-658-5404 or fill out the Contact Us form on our web page. (Yes, we serve the New Castle County area.)