Nebraska Affordable Housing Trust Fund Application 2020

Nebraska Affordable Housing
  Trust Fund Application 2020
                   Habitat for Humanity of Omaha, Inc.
                      Technical Assistance Project

This application is being submitted to the Nebraska Department for Economic Development for
 funding consideration under its 2020 Nebraska Affordable Housing Trust Fund (NAHTF) grant
                                            program.

TA Omaha: Goals and Work Plan

Since 1984 Habitat for Humanity of Omaha, Inc. (HFHO) has worked to create affordable housing
solutions through innovative homeownership opportunities and a holistic programming approach to
neighborhood rehabilitation. HFHO’s service area encompasses Douglas, Burt, and Washington counties,
with a special focus on areas of North and South Omaha. HFHO changes lives and transforms
neighborhoods through the construction of new, affordable homes, the full rehabilitation and repair of
existing homes, and the demolition of blighted and condemned houses. Together, HFHO’s programs
strive to provide families with affordable opportunities to successfully achieve and maintain
homeownership while also improving the safety, appearance, and home values of Omaha’s urban
neighborhoods.

Habitat for Humanity of Omaha (HFHO) is seeking $40,000 of support from the Nebraska Affordable
Housing Trust Fund (NAHTF) to fund two staff positions in communications and marketing. These funds
will help HFHO to further its outreach to low-income families; promoting its housing, repair, and energy-
efficiency programs as part of its larger Affirmative Marketing and Fair Housing Plan. HFHO will provide
an additional $40,000 in matching funds to support these positions from January 2021 to December
2022, or 24 months from the start date of the grant. Communications and marketing of HFHO’s program
are continuous as HFHO programs and application periods are open and operating year-round.

Activities performed by the communications and marketing staff members will include:

    •   Production of posters, brochures, and other print collateral to be displayed and distributed by
        community partners and outreach staff promoting HFHO’s programs and providing guidance on
        how to apply;
    •   Maintain HFHO website, including information on all weatherization, energy efficiency, and
        home repair programs, new and rehab home purchasing program, and pathways to qualify for
        these programs through education and financial counseling;
    •   Marketing and promotion of programs through media outlets, to include target population
        segments as identified in HFHO’s Fair Housing Affirmative Marketing Plan;
    •   Production of presentation and program materials for use when speaking to targeted audiences
        at work locations and community gatherings

The following are goals for these positions in furthering HFHO’s outreach throughout 2021 and 2022:

    •   8 outreaches to target population segments identified in HFHO’s Affirmative Marketing and Fair
        Housing Plan.
    •   Increase variety of marketing and promotion of programs, utilizing 6 new streams of
        communication over 2 years to promote programs.
    •   Increase the number families served by the organization through its programs by 10% by the
        end of 2022.
    •   Make 55 presentations between 2021-2022 within surrounding community promoting programs
        and encouraging application
    •   Increase visits to program pages of Habitat Omaha’s website by 8% by the end of 2022.

TA Omaha: Impact on Housing Production

HFHO serves communities with the highest poverty and housing burden rates in Omaha. As part of its
most recent Consolidated Plan, the City of Omaha conducted a needs study which showed that 735
households in Omaha making 30-80% of the area median income (AMI) were living in sub-standard
housing, without access to working plumbing and kitchen facilities, while 1,675 area residents were
living in overcrowded housing conditions. Across the city, 3,425 low-income families experience a
housing burden in excess of 50%, and a staggering 12,600 low-income families in Omaha experience a
housing burden greater than 30% (Consolidated Plan, pgs. 60-61). Overall, the City found that 71.3% of
families making 30-50% of AMI experience housing issues; a rise of 5% since it prepared its last
Consolidated Plan, and that the majority of these housing issues occurred among renters (Consolidated
Plan, pg. 69). For renters facing these housing issues, HFHO’s homeownership and home repair
programs can be a vital lifeline to get out from beneath poor living conditions and crushing rental
payments.

Awareness of HFHO’s programs is an important part of ensuring our program is available and welcoming
to all eligible families. While name recognition of Habitat Omaha is common in our community, an
understanding of how to apply, what the program entails, and how newer programs like our no-interest
home repair program can help alleviate poor living conditions isn’t as common. NAHTF’s investment in
the expanded communication and marketing of HFHO’s programs, particularly to identified,
underserved population segments, will help promote housing affordability and improved housing
conditions for low-income families. By achieving the goals laid out in our work plan, we will:

   •   Improve access to programs for currently underserved population segments
   •   Provide more families with an affordable mortgage with housing costs lowered to under 30%
   •   Prevent blight and stabilize neighborhoods by reaching more potential existing homeowners in
       need of critical home repairs
   •   Promote the affordability options for housing to low-income families who may be unaware of
       the option to purchase a lower-priced rehabilitated home
   •   Increase outreach to elderly and disabled homeowners to raise awareness of home repair
       programs and ability to utilize these no-interest loans for accessibility modifications

TA Omaha: Sustainability

Since its beginnings in 1984, HFHO has relied on community support of its work to provide affordable
housing solutions to low-income families. HFHO partners with corporations such as TD Ameritrade, First
National Bank, Mutual of Omaha, Spartan Nash, and Pacific Life for donations and volunteer support,
and has ongoing support from Lozier and Peter Kiewit Foundations as well as several other private
foundations. Donations from individuals, faith groups, and events, combined with grant revenue make
up other reliable streams of revenue for the organization. Other substantial revenue comes from the
mortgage payments of existing Habitat homeowners, the sale of our loans to loan partners, and the
retail revenue from HFHO’s two Habitat ReStores.

HFHO has an active and engaged board made up of 20 members who represent a wide variety of
organizations and community groups. These board members also make up individual committees which
provide strategic guidance and oversight to HFHO’s operations and financial management. Board
members give not only their time, but also financial resources, allowing HFHO to achieve a 100% giving
rate from its board of directors. A listing of HFHO’s Board of Directors, along with their roles, has been
provided as Attachment 102.

Each year volunteers invest 65,000-70,000 hours on HFHO’s home build sites and in its ReStores. Their
continued commitment of time and skills has allowed HFHO to expand its home building production
each year and grow its events such as Brew Ha Ha and Womens Power Luncheon. The strong financial
and volunteer commitment of our supporters allows HFHO to maximize it impact in our community.

HFHO maintains many relationships and partnerships throughout the Omaha community to increase the
effectiveness of its efforts through goal synergy and to reduce duplication of efforts across
organizations. Neighborhood associations within its focus areas are important partners, including the
Neighborhood Action and Fact (NAAF) Neighborhood Association, Miller Park/Minnie Lusa
Neighborhood Association, Deer Park Neighborhood Association, and North Omaha Neighborhood
Association. These groups help HFHO form its building and revitalization efforts to best meet the needs
of the target neighborhood. In addition, HFHO partners with the Nelson Mandela School, the
Empowerment Network, the 24th Street Business Improvement District, the Omaha Housing Authority,
and 75 North.

Key partners in our work are:

Omaha Land Bank – HFHO worked with the Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce and state legislators
to organize and implement the state’s first land bank. HFHO works with the Omaha Land Bank to
demolish blighted houses and acquire homes and lots within its focus areas for building and
rehabilitation.

City of Omaha – HFHO participates annually in the preparation of the City of Omaha’s Action Plan and
its larger Consolidated Plan through input sessions and strategic goal alignment. HFHO considers its
relationship with the City to be a vital partnership in making impactful changes within the Omaha metro
area.

Omaha 100 – A key partner for HFHO as a mortgage lender, Omaha 100 allows HFHO to offer no- to low-
interest affordable mortgage loans while maintaining its role in communicating with the homeowner
and handling delinquencies.

Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce – HFHO’s CEO is an ex officio member of the Greater Omaha
Chamber of Commerce, where she serves as a voice for the often-underserved communities in
northeastern and southeastern Omaha.

NAHTF’s investment in these two communications and marketing positions will allow HFHO to further its
outreach to underserved populations in our community. HFHO is continually seeking to invite more
families into its programs from populations not as easily reached by word-of-mouth referrals and
community program awareness. It’s HFHO’s desire to serve a richly diverse group of applicants who
represent all of the communities most in need in our service area. As part of this ongoing effort, HFHO
prepares an Affirmative Marketing and Fair Housing Plan annually; identifying underserved groups and
laying out plans to better market its programs to these groups. Through this grant HFHO hopes to
increase its investment in marketing and communicating program options to better capture a wide
variety of ethnicities, races, ages, disabilities, and family sizes as part of its applicant pool. HFHO believes
this type of diversity not only upholds its strong commitment to fair housing lending, but strengthens
our communities by creating more affordable housing options for a greater number of people, ensuring
future organizational success. Upon completion of the grant HFHO will reallocate ReStore revenue to
replace the funding and allow for the continuation of this work.

Habitat for Humanity of Omaha Board of Directors

Board Chair: Drew Collier, 2015-2021 – Community Volunteer, Retired Executive -
Union Pacific

Board Vice-Chair: Levi Scheppers, 2017-2020 – Chief Executive Officer,
OrthoNebraska

Board Treasurer: Rollie Johns, 2017-2020 – Executive Vice President & Chief Financial
Officer, CSG

Board Secretary: George Achola, 2017-2020 – Vice President & Legal Counsel,
Burlington Capital, Real Estate

Bob Dalrymple, 2018-2021 – Executive Vice President & Division Executive, Bank of the
West
Javier Fernandez, 2019-2020 – Vice President Chief Financial Officer, OPPD
Julie Fritz, 2016-2021 - Community Volunteer
Dr. Cynthia Gooch-Grayson, 2020-2021 – Associate Vice President, Equity and Inclusion
Jeff Gordman, 2018-2021 – President, Jeff Gordman Advisory LLC
Buck Heim, 2016-2021 - Partner, Kutak Rock LLP
Marcos Hernandez, 2018-2021 – Vice President of Community Development, US Bank
Dan Houghton, 2019-2020 – Co-Founder & Executive Vice President, Buildertrend
Ryan Iwansky, 2019-2020 – Financial Advisor, D.A. Davidson & Companies
Keith Jankuski, 2018-2021 – President & Chief Operations Officer, Medical Group
Enterprise, CHI Health
Teri Mercer, 2020-2021 – Chief Financial Officer, McCarthy Capital
Brian Miles, 2019-2020 – Senior Vice President & Chief Compliance Officer, Bridges
Trust
Gustavo Oberto, 2020-2021 – President, Elecsys International for Lindsay Corporation
Connie Ryan, 2015-2020 – President & Chief Executive Officer, Streck, Inc.
Angel Starks, 2019-2020 – Chief Experience Officer & Team Lead for Team Locale,
Nebraska Realty
Caren Woodruff, 2018-2021 – Founder & Owner QuarterLife Coaching

TA Omaha: Organizational and Financial Management

HFHO has a centralized organizational structure, with oversight by its Board of Directors and Executive
Committee. HFHO’s CEO heads the organization, with 5 senior leadership positions leading individual
departments and managing sub-departments.

HFHO plans for its financial needs by diversifying its revenue streams to ensure stability and a lack of
dependence on a single funding source. Annual revenues to the organization come from a variety of
federal, state, city, and private and corporate grants as well as individual, faith, and event donations. In
addition to its grants from the Nebraska Affordable Housing Trust, HFHO receives public grants from
CDBG, the Department of Energy, Federal Home Loan Bank of Topeka, HUD’s SHOP program, and
Nebraska Environmental Trust. Income from HFHO’s homeowner mortgage payments, loan sales, and
ReStore revenue provide additional funding.

HFHO maintains a current financial internal controls policy for the organization which governs all
processes from donation intake and processing to mortgage control policies and procedures. The
organization has adopted Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) as promulgated by the
American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Financial Accounting Standards Board.
HFHO’s CFO, Al Siemek, and its board Finance Committee ensure continued adherence to these policies.
In addition, HFHO undergoes an annual audit by an independent auditor and makes these audits
available to the public on its website. HFHO’s Board of Directors or its Finance Committee is provided
with a monthly financial reporting package including, among other things, a statement of financial
position and a statement of activities, which details revenues and expenditures. This monthly package is
also distributed to the senior management team and the accounting staff. All department heads
receive individual department statement of activities monthly for review. As part of its affiliate
obligations to Habitat for Humanity International (HFHI), HFHO also submits its IRS 990 and current
audit to HFHI for review annually.

HFHO will match NAHTF’s funding of this proposed project with $40,000 over two years from a cash
donation made from an individual donor, which has already been secured. The match funding will be
used for the same activity as the NAHTF funding; the salary of two communications and marketing staff
members. No leverage funding will be used for this project.