New Housing Grant Project for Libby
Senator Max Baucus, Fannie Mae CEO work together to help boost housing in Lincoln County
January 25, 2007
(Washington D.C.) – During a news conference in Washington, D.C., Montana’s senior U.S. Senator Max Baucus today announced a new grant project to help more Libby residents own their own homes.
Lending A Hand To Lincoln County
Baucus was joined by Fannie Mae CEO Dan Mudd in announcing a new $75,000 housing assistance program designed to help people who want to own new homes, and to help keep those who already own a home from defaulting. In addition to personalized credit counseling services, the grant will help launch a website for people to get online help with financial questions.
“This project is a great example of what working together can accomplish,” Baucus said. “This housing project is just another piece in the puzzle to help the people of Libby.”
The grant also carves out $15,000 to help Lincoln County finalize a growth plan to anticipate working family housing needs and future development projects such as schools, parks, and economic development initiatives.
Fannie Mae is a quasi governmental organization that helps provide affordable housing assistance.
Late last year, Baucus met with Mudd to discuss possible housing projects in Libby. After meeting with Baucus, Mudd dispatched a Fannie Mae team to Libby to assess the situation, determining that a need exists for affordable housing assistance.
“Let me emphasize, this is all just a start,” Mudd said today. “Be assured that I’m going to keep my eye on this because helping communities like Libby is exactly why Fannie Mae exists. And I’m sure Senator Baucus will keep an eye on me too, which I appreciate.”
Fannie Mae’s Commitment To Libby
• $50,000 to support Montana Homeownership Network’s foreclosure prevention and owner-occupied rehabilitation programs: This grant is helping train home ownership counselors on default counseling and advanced credit counseling.
• $10,000 for Home Counselor Online programs with Northwestern Montana Human Resources: This grant will help Northwestern Montana Human Resources to reactivate Home Counselor Online as well as train the staff of the program
• $15,000 to support the development of Lincoln County’s growth plan: This grant will help Lincoln County finalize its growth plan.
In addition to the $75,000 grant, Fannie Mae has helped establish the “Libby Housing Collaborative,” which is a working group organized and facilitated by the Montana Community Business Center. Members include the Montana Board of Housing, the Montana Home Ownership Network, and Sen. Baucus’ office. The Collaborative will work on drafting a housing and community development strategy for Libby.
Press Release by Senator Max Baucus
Related Links:
Max Baucus website
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