Massachusetts-based Co-op Developer Joins National Network
Cooperative Development Institute will help owners of manufactured homes buy and operate their communities in three states.
South Deerfield, MA (September 17, 2009) — Cooperative Development Institute (CDI) today announced it has been named one of eleven Certified Technical Assistance Providers (CTAPs) to join the national affordable housing partnership, ROC USA™ Network. The group has also been awarded a $50,000 grant from the Corporation for Enterprise Development (CFED) to support the operations of its technical assistance program. CDI will serve homeowners in Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island.
ROC USA preserves affordable housing by making resident ownership of manufactured home communities viable. ROC USA, with support from The Ford Foundation and Fannie Mae, grew out of a 25-year-old effort in New Hampshire that has supported the creation of 93 resident-owned communities in that state.
In the 14 months since its launch, ROC USA Network’s CTAPs have helped 13 resident corporations purchase their communities in eight states.
CFED’s Innovations in Manufactured Homes (I’M HOME) initiative provided a grant of $50,000 to help cover CDI’s start-up costs in this new venture. I’M HOME has provided funding and support to over 35 organization around the country since 2005. “As an organization dedicated to helping low-income Americans build assets, CFED is orchestrating a 10-year market transformation strategy to realize the asset-building potential of manufactured housing by testing and spreading solutions that will help families begin to build home equity and find economic security,” said Andrea Levere, president of CFED. “We are thrilled to have CDI join the I’M HOME Initiative to help homeowners living in manufactured home communities in the northeast purchase their communities and increase their financial security by providing the necessary financing and technical assistance.”
As a member of the ROC USA Network, CDI will deliver pre- and post-purchase technical assistance, training and help securing financing to support homeowners across Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island in buying their communities and securing their economic futures through resident ownership. There are an estimated 50,000 manufactured home communities in the US, and about 500 in these three states.
“Our program creates win-win-win solutions for residents, owners and the broader community alike. When residents take ownership of their land, they acquire both the control and the means to ensure that their community is a safe, healthy and affordable place to live. Our assistance will allow them to buy their communities and secure their economic futures through resident ownership. With an estimated 94,000 residents living in manufactured home communities in the tri-state area, the potential impact is considerable. Our attractive products and services will also assist park owners to sell responsibly. And municipalities will see the preservation of a valuable affordable housing option,” said Andy Danforth, Housing program manager for the Cooperative Development Institute.
Resident ownership occurs when owners of manufactured (or “mobile”) homes form a membership association to purchase their community (or “park”) when it becomes available for sale. Without resident ownership, homeowners risk eviction when a community is sold to a new owner who may convert the land to other uses, or impose higher land rents over which the homeowners have no control.
“We are excited to have CDI joining our non-profit network,” said Paul Bradley, founding president of ROC USA. “They share with us a deep commitment to preserving this important source of affordable housing for the three million homeowners in America who live in manufactured home communities. Resident ownership has been demonstrated to align ownership interests, preserve affordable communities and reduce the economic insecurity these homeowners face,” he said.
CDI is a veteran co-op developer with fifteen years’ experience helping cooperatives start up and incorporate, garner funding, write business plans and financial projections, develop better policies and procedures, purchase property and relocate, expand, transfer ownership, create succession and retirement plans, implement new strategies, train boards and staff, and more.
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Cooperative Development Institute (CDI) – CDI was established in the spring of 1994. Its mission is “to build a vibrant co-operative economy through the creation and development of successful co-operative enterprises in diverse communities in New York and New England." CDI is committed to building sustainable rural and urban communities where people work together to achieve their common goals, have access to quality jobs and affordable products and services, and share ownership of essential resources. www.cdi.coop
ROC USA is a social enterprise that offers training and financing to help owners of manufactured homes gain security through ownership of their communities. ROC USA works through two wholly-owned subsidiaries: ROC USA Network member organizations – non-profit Certified Technical Assistance Providers – who provide the pre- and post-purchase training and technical assistance that helps homeowners buy and sustain their community; and ROC USA Capital that makes community purchase loans that provide a low-cost way for all homeowners within a community to become a member and voter in their member-controlled cooperative. www.rocusa.org
The Corporation for Enterprise Development (CFED) expands economic opportunity by helping Americans start and grow businesses, go to college, own a home, and save for their children’s and own economic futures. CFED identifies promising ideas, tests and refines them in communities to find out what works, craft policies and products to help good ideas reach scale, and develop partnerships to promote lasting change. CFED brings together community practice, public policy and private markets in new and effective ways to achieve greater economic impact. Through its Innovations in Manufactured Homes (I'M HOME) initiative, CFED has awarded nearly $4.5 million in grants since 2005. Much of this grant support has been dedicated to building the capacity of the local affordable housing organizations that will form the backbone of the ROC USA Network of technical assistance providers. www.cfed.org
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Contacts
CDI: Andrew Danforth, (413) 665-1271, adanforth@cdi.coop
ROC USA: Paul Bradley, (603) 856-0709, pbradley@rocusa.org
CFED: Kristin Lawton, (202) 207-0137, klawton@cfed.org