Vermont Business Magazine The Champlain Housing Trust announced today that NorthCountry Federal Credit Union has awarded the organization with a $10,000 grant to go toward sustaining and expanding their financial literacy and counseling programming. This is the third year in a row the Credit Union has supported CHT’s financial services which include homebuyer education, pre-purchase counseling, financial capabilities education and mentoring, foreclosure and delinquency intervention services, and a new eviction program.
“As a community credit union, we are pleased to sponsor programs that help people create a base of financial stability, and to secure and keep housing,” said Brian Jaffarian, NCFCU’s Public Relations Specialist.
CHT expects to be busier than ever with the State’s newly announced $35 million revenue bond to support the development of affordable housing over the next several years.
“We’re so thankful for the support of NorthCountry, especially at this time. With so many new projects in the pipeline we expect to see a large increase in the number of folks applying to CHT, and in turn, an increasing need for home education and financial literacy classes,” said Rob Leuchs, Director of Homeownership at CHT.
Credit is increasingly important in today’s society: just last week news broke about the hacking of Equifax, one of the three major consumer credit reporting agencies. The breach compromised the personal data of millions of consumers, and it’s the personal responsibility of everyone affected to take the necessary steps to defend themselves.
“It’s vital that people understand how credit works, especially when you have a breach of trust with a large organization such as Equifax. It’s important to have a trusted resource to go to that will help you understand the implications,” said Barbara Geries, CHT’s Home Education Manager.
To learn more about the work of Champlain Housing Trust and their financial counseling services, go to www.getahome.org, or call (802) 862-6244. Founded in 1984, CHT is the largest community land trust in the country. Throughout Chittenden, Franklin and Grand Isle counties, CHT owns or manages approximately 2,200 apartments, stewards nearly 575 shared equity homes in its signature shared equity program, offers homebuyer education and financial counseling and operates a revolving loan fund that provides affordable home repair loans and project management to low-income Vermonters. In 2008, CHT won the prestigious United Nations World Habitat Award, recognizing its innovative, sustainable programs.
NorthCountry is the community credit union for the Champlain Valley, Central Vermont, and the Northeast Kingdom. It has been nationally recognized for the value it provides for its accountholders, and is regularly recognized in the local community for its contributions to local non-profit organizations. NorthCountry serves nearly 40,000 members from its ten locations throughout northern Vermont. For more information go tohttps://www.northcountry.org.
Source: Champlain Housing Trust 9.15.2017