Congresswoman Waters Celebrates Nearly $20 Million in Neighborhood Stabilization Funds for Los Angeles

Congresswoman Maxine Waters (CA-35) today celebrated the awarding of nearly $10 million in Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP) grants to both the City and County of Los Angeles to purchase, rehabilitate and resell foreclosed homes in neighborhoods that have been devastated by the economic crisis.  Congresswoman Waters, who serves as Chairwoman of the Subcommittee on Housing and Community Opportunity, authored the legislation that created NSP and has led efforts in the U.S. Congress to combat foreclosures and neighborhood decline. 

Congresswoman Waters has advocated continuously for robust funding of NSP, which to date totals $7 billion, including the $1 billion in awards announced today by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).  The funds awarded today were provided under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform Act of 2010 via a formula developed by HUD.  Congresswoman Waters, a member of the conference committee responsible for drafting that legislation, championed both the $1 billion NSP provision, as well as an additional $2 billion for a program provide loans to help unemployed homeowners stay in their homes.

Today's awards mark the third infusion of funds to NSP; $4 billion in formula funds were previously provided under the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008, and an additional $2 billion in competitive funding was provided under the stimulus package in February 2009.  Under those previous rounds of funding, the City and County of Los Angeles received a combined $210 million, and the State of California received $145 million.

"The large awards made today to the City and County of Los Angeles reflect the seriousness of the foreclosure crisis in the Los Angeles area," said Congresswoman Waters.  "While foreclosures are certainly a problem throughout California, they represent a true crisis in the 35th District.  The rate at which banks reclaimed ownership of homes in foreclosure was 50 percent higher in the 35th District than the rate in California, and almost double the rate nationally."

Since the recession took hold in December 2007, about 2.3 million homes nationally have been repossessed by banks.  The foreclosure crisis continues to plague communities, with banks taking control over nearly 93,000 homes across the country in July, a nearly 40 percent increase over this time last year.

"While I'm pleased that I was able to secure this third round of NSP funding, we still need additional resources given the scale of the foreclosure crisis.  With nearly one in ten American households at risk for foreclosure, our communities will continue to be vulnerable without additional action," said the Congresswoman.

Neighborhood stabilization funds are managed by three organizations in the City and County of Los Angeles.  The City of L.A., in partnership with non-profit organizations, created Restore Neighorhoods L.A., a community based development organization, to run NSP in Central, East and South L.A., and the North and South San Fernando Valley.  The L.A. Community Development Commission administers their neighborhood stabilization program in the areas of L.A. County that are outside of the City of L.A.  Additionally, L.A. Neighborhood Housing Services, a non-profit lender and community developer, is leading a consortium of organizations in NSP work across Los Angeles, including areas in the 35th District.

"I commend all the local advocates and officials who have been putting the funds we provide in Congress to good use on the ground," said Congresswoman Waters.