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Board of Directors
November is a month of preparation for family dinners, present exchange and winter Debby Lewis
weather — the “to-do” list can become overwhelming. Last November, forty volun- President
teers added a very special “to-do” to their list—preparing HCA’s Homelessness
Prevention Fund mailing. Our HPF troops stamped, stuffed, counted and sent over Paul Parravano
16,500 letters asking for contributions from the Arlington community. Vice-President
Marc Dohan
The hard work of our volunteers collected over $46,000 in donations with more
coming in everyday. This impressive amount is a tribute to all those who partici- Treasurer
pated in our HPF mailing, as well as the strong desire of our very special, close knit
Jan Blodgett
town to help our friends and neighbors in the community.
Clerk
The gifts received from this appeal help those in danger of becoming homeless in Deena Anderson
Arlington. HCA’s Homelessness Prevention Fund helps families and individuals the pace experienced in 2007, while
Gregory Bowe
with security deposits, moving expenses, and back rent. These grants go out to Arlington had only 2, about the same
those needing to get over a hump in order to be in a stable living situation for six Jack Cooper rate as in 2007.
months or more. Mary Doyle Q: How is the subprime mortgage
Monique Magliozzi crisis affecting Arlington? How did this all happen? Both statistical
Next year, we hope you too will add another item to your November “to-do” list. Neal Mongold and anecdotal evidence points to an
Round out your turkey stuffing and stocking stuffers by helping HCA provide for Marylou Vest A: While foreclosures are rising in unregulated mortgage industry, unscrup-
Arlington families and individuals and give a few hours to stuff our HPF envelopes! Arlington, they are certainly not at the ulous lending officers, unprepared buyers
Laura Wiener
unprecedented levels of other towns and an over-heated housing market. Please join HCA friends
Executive Director and cities in the Boston area. Recent There is strong evidence that the current and supporters at our
David J. Levy statistics show that foreclosures in crisis is less a result of rising interest
Massachusetts are disproportionately rates on adjustable-rate mortgages, and
Outreach Coordinator taking place in lower-income, urban more due to a drop in housing values
P R I N T E D O N R E C Y C L E D PA P E R Joanna A. Ain communities. The City of Boston, for and poor lending practices. In a good
instance, experienced over 700 foreclo- housing market, such as in Arlington,
sures in 2007. Arlington is being affected owners falling behind on mortgage pay- Sunday, April 13, 2008, 1-3 PM
differently. According to the Warren ments may be able to refinance their Jason Russell House
Group, in 2004 and 2005 there was not loans in an effort to lower their payments. (Corner of Massachusetts Ave. and Jason St.)
a single foreclosure in Arlington. There However, if the value of one’s home has
were 19 foreclosures in Arlington in 2006. decreased beyond the amount of their Free Raffle Prizes! Exercise!
In 2007, there were 15. Foreclosures in original mortgage, a homeowner will Fun for the Whole Family!
Arlington are increasing, but not to the not have the option of refinancing.
extent of other communities in the For more information, contact Joanna
Commonwealth. If you are an Arlington homeowner at walk@housingcorparlington.org
who is falling behind on mortgage pay- or 781-316-3606.
Another difference between Arlington ments or already in the process of being
and other cities and towns is that to date, foreclosed, I urge you to give HCA a
housing values and sales in Arlington call or come visit our offices so that we affordable housing in MA?
have remained steady. This allows home- may connect you with counselors
owners who find themselves in a poten- trained to help you make informed A: The foreclosure crisis is having a last-
tial foreclosure situation the option of decisions. More and more lenders are ing effect on both individuals and the
either selling their home or refinancing. agreeing to work with homeowners communities they live in. Homeowners
Median sale prices for single-family rather than follow through with costly are losing their homes in record numbers,
homes in Arlington have only decreased foreclosures, even tenants in multi-family buildings under
by 6% since their high in 2005, and sales if lenders are foreclosure are being displaced, and
have actually increased by 1%. By com- forced to take houses in lower-income urban communi-
parison, in Worcester where median sales smaller losses up ties are being foreclosed, boarded-up and
prices have dropped by 7% since 2005, front. For both abandoned. Block by block, the foreclosure
sales are down by over 30%. parties, this is cer- crisis is deteriorating neighborhoods that
tainly a step in the were once vibrant communities. This
Regionally, foreclosure rates continue to right direction. reshuffling of tenants and the potential
climb, and in harder-hit urban communi- David J. Levy, Executive surge of renters into the housing market
ties the rate of foreclosures are staggering Director of HCA is increasing demand for apartments,
for the first part of 2008. The City of which will eventually lead to higher
Boston had 302 foreclosures in the first Q: What effect has the recent (Continued on page 3)
two months of 2008, more than double surge in foreclosures had on • Spring 2008
(Continued from page 1)
rents —straight-forward supply and
HCA is thrilled to welcome Deena and music for the If you’re lucky, your home on a typical she tucked her daughter into bed at night. demand economics.
Anderson to our Board of Directors! Cambridge River Friday afternoon feels like that of Annette When a first-floor apartment opened up,
Festival and con- Brubaker’s and her family. It is officially her family was able to move up a flight. The effect of the foreclosure crisis on
As a new tenant of one of HCA’s Mass tinues to host and the weekend in this sunny residence, Still small, but at least no more water was affordable housing programs in the
Ave properties, Deena is personally com- produce stages for and Annette and her kids are home from coming up from the floors. Commonwealth is less obvious.
mitted to HCA’s purpose and mission: Arts First, a cele- school. Warm and relaxed, but with a During the Romney administration,
HCA is important to me because they pro- bration of the arts touch of excitement about upcoming It was during this time that Annette met there was a strong push to mix mar-
vide affordable housing for those in need, at Harvard. She weekend activities, the family’s three David Levy, HCA’s Executive Director, ket-rate housing units with those
including a middle income person like also has overseen bedroom apartment holds family and at Town Day. David said Annette was a priced affordably. Until recently, this
myself. I’m a beneficiary. I came from a very the May-Fair and guests moving from activity to activity perfect candidate for HCA’s Affordable had been a sound practice that
difficult living situation in Arlington that had Oktoberfest in — afternoon snacks, reading, guitar play- Rental Program and encouraged her to allowed developers to use profits
many problems —one of them being high collaboration with ing, computer games. With the murmur fill out an application. generated from market units to offset
utility and heating costs. David Levy [HCA’s Scullers Jazz Club of a fish tank and the chirps of two para- lower revenues from affordable units.
Executive Director] was kind, understanding, and the Harvard keets in the background, Annette, an As the foreclosure crisis builds
compassionate, and willing to help — and HCA's Board of Directors at our 2007 Annual Meeting Square Business Association. Deena Arlington Public School teacher, sat momentum and the housing market
he did. I was finally able to exhale and move attended the High School of Music and down to tell me how her family found as a whole takes a significant down-
into a cozy, comfortable, clean, renovated for the Arts and Harvard’s Events, and Art in New York City as well as Berklee their way to their HCA apartment. turn, in some communities develop-
apartment that would not break me financially. Exhibitions and Community Windows College of Music here in Boston. ers are finding it more difficult to sell
I will always be indebted to HCA. coordinator at Holyoke Center and Annette, her husband and their growing these market units. This puts entire
University Place. With her experience, spirit and passion family lived in Belmont for six years affordable housing projects at risk.
Deena is the assistant events producer for affordable housing, HCA’s board and until the two-family house where they
for the Learning from Performers Deena has coordinated and hosted stages staff are already enjoying having Deena were renting was put up for sale. The Local, not-for-profit community
Program at Harvard University's Office featuring jazz, percussion and poetry on our team. Welcome, Deena! family was forced to move and needed development organizations, which
to find a deleaded apartment for their have been working for decades to
two year old daughter and five year old Anxious about dealing with yet another revitalize neighborhoods historically
son. After hearing the children’s ages, unstable apartment, Annette explored experiencing disinvestment, are taking
S AV E T H E D AT E ! many owners would insist that they buying an “affordable” two bedroom steps to address these circumstances.
had nothing available. condo on Mass Ave. However, with Counseling for first-time homebuyers
HCA’s 2008 Spring Clean Up Annette’s teacher’s salary, condos were is now focused on how to avoid sub-
HCA has been selected by the Art Saturday, May 10, 2008 The family eventually found a place in prohibitively expensive. prime loans and predatory lending
Connection to receive local art for our Arlington for $200 more a month than practices. If a homeowner is in fore-
new offices. The Art Connection, a non- Contact Joanna at 781-316-3606 their Belmont apartment. After a year, After a year and a half on HCA’s wait- closure, counselors are prepared to
profit located in Boston, provides artwork or jain@housingcorparlington.org for more information. their landlord raised their rent by $300 ing list, Annette and her family finally mediate with lenders to find mutually
to non-profits offering services to people a month. In the year since moving from got their opportunity. With their HCA agreeable refinancing plans. With
in the community. Since non-profits like Belmont, the family’s housing cost was apartment, Annette’s kids are able to encouragement and funding from the
HCA typically do not have budgets for about to increase by $500 a month. stay in the Arlington Public School Department of Housing & Community
items to beautify their space, the Art system where they have been since Development, community organiza-
Connection allows community groups Annette and her family eventually found kindergarten. The family can remain tions are also working to purchase
to greet their constituents with walls that their second apartment in Arlington. part of the community — taking part in at-risk properties to keep them occu-
match the mission of the organization After several good years, they were then Arlington traditions such as Town Day pied and maintained.
and all who are involved. HCA will be HCA is delighted to announce that Bank pursue our mission of preserving a told that the house was going to be sold. and Fourth of July fireworks. Annette
receiving artwork in a variety of media of America Charitable Foundation has diverse, sustainable community that Once again, the family had to search for can drop off and pick up her kids from Downturns in the housing market are
by local artists—all portraying HCA’s given a $5,000 grant to help fund HCA’s includes affordable and mixed-income another place to live. school. Her short commute allows her typically periods of opportunity for
welcoming and inclusive attitude. efforts to provide affordable housing in housing opportunities. to spend as much time as possible with affordable housing development as
Arlington. Bank of America works to At this point, Annette and her husband her son and daughter. non-profit developers have more
Ever wonder what kind of artwork a help local organizations provide oppor- We are very thankful for Bank of were going through a separation, and negotiating power and can raise capi-
retired teacher, a banker, a high school tunities for members of the community. America’s support of community-based Annette needed to find something Annette calls it a “godsend to have the tal outside of typical markets — not
student and two HCA staff members This grant will provide funding for the organizations such as HCA. We hope quickly for her and her two children. opportunity to rent from HCA.” For the so when coupled with the current
would pick if they all put their heads programming of HCA’s Affordable their involvement in Arlington will They found their third apartment in first time, her family lives in an apartment foreclosure crisis. How the federal
together? HCA invites you to come by Rental Program and its Homelessness encourage other businesses to support Arlington, a tiny basement apartment on where everyone can have their own government and lenders make adjust-
and visit our new offices with our local, Prevention Fund. affordable housing and other local initiatives. Mass Ave, thinking it would only be bedroom. They are no longer vulnerable ments in 2008 will be critical to
original artwork this summer! “HCA is very appreciative to Bank of temporary. The family ended up remain- to owners deciding to sell their properties containing this crisis, and ultimately
It is with the help of organizations like America and the local banking commu- ing in that building for three years. or increase the rent. This family’s Friday will determine whether longer-term
For more information about Bank of America and the contributions nity as a whole, which continues to afternoons can remain as they are, com- affordability challenges will surface in
the Art Connection, go to we receive everyday from local com- demonstrate their commitment to There were constant water problems; fortable and happy, for a long time to come. Massachusetts and across the nation
www.theartconnection.org munity members that give the Housing affordable housing in Arlington,” says Annette remembers her knees getting wet as a whole.
Corporation of Arlington the ability to HCA Executive Director, David J. Levy. due to the dampness in the carpet when
2 • Spring 2008 Spring 2008 • 3
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