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Jim Grenfell, Executive Director, Wyoming Housing Network
Challenge: For people living in rural communities, access to services can mean traveling many miles, a particularly daunting challenge for low-income residents. Homebuyer education is an essential service for helping people realize the dream of homeownership. It is often even required for financial assistance and it is key to revitalizing communities through stable homeowners. Providing this critical education to residents in Wyoming, the nation's least populated state, can be tough for a small nonprofit. The Wyoming Housing Network is tasked with serving the entire state of Wyoming, all 97,818 square miles, with one office and a small staff.
Wyoming is known for its vast plains and Rocky Mountain range. It's also the most sparsely populated state in the nation, with just 5.8 people per square mile. Wyoming is sometimes said to be just a big town with really long streets — but while we may be spread out, we are proud of our close, personal connections. Unfortunately, rural residents often have to travel far and wide to obtain needed healthcare and social services, such as housing education and assistance. And for those with limited incomes, it could mean forgoing the dream of homeownership.
The Wyoming Housing Network (WHN) has been a top producer of new homeowners in the NeighborWorks network since 2009. In the 2014-2015 fiscal year alone, WHN enrolled 1,160 clients in our homebuyer education program, reaching them through a highly successful system we launched in 2010.
We discovered that though Wyoming's communities may be far flung, the Internet can bridge the gaps significantly. Some may believe we still rely on the Pony Express to communicate, but Wyoming actually ranks 13th in the nation in connectivity, with more than 74 percent of residents connected to the internet in their homes. Even the most remote little towns, such as Medicine Bow with a population of 279, have internet access. This high connectivity provides WHN with an essential vehicle for overcoming the challenge of serving clients across the wide open spaces.
The model WHN developed harnesses this powerful engine and advances our mission to promote homeownership through education. Our system allows clients to complete an online course that can be accessed via personal computer or mobile device. The course is available 24 hours a day at the client's convenience wherever Internet access is available. The online component is followed by one-on-one consultations with one of our counselors. These most often take place over the telephone because our clients generally live in communities' hours from our office. At every step, WHN is in contact with clients through email and over the telephone, thus providing them with a personal connection and support as they navigate the homebuyer process.
"My homeownership counselor was very personable and relatable. She answered all my questions and gave real-life examples," homebuyer Genny Rose told WHN.
Of course, WHN is committed to serving all our Wyoming clients, so our educators may forgo the online element and offer one-on-one education sessions in person or over the telephone for those who are unable or uncomfortable about using the Internet. All the sessions use the Realizing the American Dream curriculum, which includes teaching tools, activities, worksheets and visual aids.
Despite the Internet's vital role, WHN would not be able to reach so many prospective homeowners without strong partnerships. Community lenders, realtors and social service providers are eager to support our education programs and help people achieve their dream of homeownership. Being responsive and accessible to those partners across the state is an ongoing commitment of our education programs team.
WHN's closest partner has been the Wyoming Community Development Authority (WCDA), the state housing finance agency. WCDA requires homebuyer education for all its loans, which include interest-free down payment assistance to make homeownership possible for many families. The agency includes information about WHN's education program in its marketing materials, outreach efforts and lender education. It also provides payments to WHN for every WCDA client who completes our education program. This has contributed significantly to the homebuyer education program's sustainability, and to our ability to provide additional services, such as financial capability coaching. Grants and contributions from banks and other institutions have increased our reach and sustainability as well. All these partners clearly recognize the importance of educating new homeowners and WHN's proven record in implementing the program.
WHN's homebuyer education model works well in our rural state. It allows us to take advantage of technology and community partnerships as we serve close to 1,000 clients annually through a financially sustainable business line. But, we are most proud of the quality and valuable service we bring to our clients.
Our staff works hard to make sure that though we may never meet them face-to-face, our clients feel that the experience is high-quality, responsive and personal. In fiscal year 2015, 99 percent of our clients said the education they received from us will make them stronger homeowners, and 97 percent said they would refer a family member or friend to WHN. Tony Stark, a new homeowner in Lander, Wyoming, stated, "I would recommend that anyone buying a home take the course and work with Wyoming Housing Network."
This process has been as instructive as it has been productive. We learned that technology can vastly broaden our reach and that developing a model for harnessing that power increases the number of people we can serve. Understanding individual needs and abilities allows us to tailor our delivery system appropriately by offering the choice of consultations via the Internet, email, telephone or in person. Finally, a partner can provide more than financial support, it can help us get our message out by including our programs and materials in its own enterprise.
Challenge: For people living in rural communities, access to services can mean traveling many miles, a particularly daunting challenge for low-income residents. Homebuyer education is an essential service for helping people realize the dream of homeownership. It is often even required for financial assistance and it is key to revitalizing communities through stable homeowners. Providing this critical education to residents in Wyoming, the nation's least populated state, can be tough for a small nonprofit. The Wyoming Housing Network is tasked with serving the entire state of Wyoming, all 97,818 square miles, with one office and a small staff.
Wyoming is known for its vast plains and Rocky Mountain range. It's also the most sparsely populated state in the nation, with just 5.8 people per square mile. Wyoming is sometimes said to be just a big town with really long streets — but while we may be spread out, we are proud of our close, personal connections. Unfortunately, rural residents often have to travel far and wide to obtain needed healthcare and social services, such as housing education and assistance. And for those with limited incomes, it could mean forgoing the dream of homeownership.
The Wyoming Housing Network (WHN) has been a top producer of new homeowners in the NeighborWorks network since 2009. In the 2014-2015 fiscal year alone, WHN enrolled 1,160 clients in our homebuyer education program, reaching them through a highly successful system we launched in 2010.
We discovered that though Wyoming's communities may be far flung, the Internet can bridge the gaps significantly. Some may believe we still rely on the Pony Express to communicate, but Wyoming actually ranks 13th in the nation in connectivity, with more than 74 percent of residents connected to the internet in their homes. Even the most remote little towns, such as Medicine Bow with a population of 279, have internet access. This high connectivity provides WHN with an essential vehicle for overcoming the challenge of serving clients across the wide open spaces.
The model WHN developed harnesses this powerful engine and advances our mission to promote homeownership through education. Our system allows clients to complete an online course that can be accessed via personal computer or mobile device. The course is available 24 hours a day at the client's convenience wherever Internet access is available. The online component is followed by one-on-one consultations with one of our counselors. These most often take place over the telephone because our clients generally live in communities' hours from our office. At every step, WHN is in contact with clients through email and over the telephone, thus providing them with a personal connection and support as they navigate the homebuyer process.
"My homeownership counselor was very personable and relatable. She answered all my questions and gave real-life examples," homebuyer Genny Rose told WHN.
Of course, WHN is committed to serving all our Wyoming clients, so our educators may forgo the online element and offer one-on-one education sessions in person or over the telephone for those who are unable or uncomfortable about using the Internet. All the sessions use the Realizing the American Dream curriculum, which includes teaching tools, activities, worksheets and visual aids.
Despite the Internet's vital role, WHN would not be able to reach so many prospective homeowners without strong partnerships. Community lenders, realtors and social service providers are eager to support our education programs and help people achieve their dream of homeownership. Being responsive and accessible to those partners across the state is an ongoing commitment of our education programs team.
WHN's closest partner has been the Wyoming Community Development Authority (WCDA), the state housing finance agency. WCDA requires homebuyer education for all its loans, which include interest-free down payment assistance to make homeownership possible for many families. The agency includes information about WHN's education program in its marketing materials, outreach efforts and lender education. It also provides payments to WHN for every WCDA client who completes our education program. This has contributed significantly to the homebuyer education program's sustainability, and to our ability to provide additional services, such as financial capability coaching. Grants and contributions from banks and other institutions have increased our reach and sustainability as well. All these partners clearly recognize the importance of educating new homeowners and WHN's proven record in implementing the program.
WHN's homebuyer education model works well in our rural state. It allows us to take advantage of technology and community partnerships as we serve close to 1,000 clients annually through a financially sustainable business line. But, we are most proud of the quality and valuable service we bring to our clients.
Our staff works hard to make sure that though we may never meet them face-to-face, our clients feel that the experience is high-quality, responsive and personal. In fiscal year 2015, 99 percent of our clients said the education they received from us will make them stronger homeowners, and 97 percent said they would refer a family member or friend to WHN. Tony Stark, a new homeowner in Lander, Wyoming, stated, "I would recommend that anyone buying a home take the course and work with Wyoming Housing Network."
This process has been as instructive as it has been productive. We learned that technology can vastly broaden our reach and that developing a model for harnessing that power increases the number of people we can serve. Understanding individual needs and abilities allows us to tailor our delivery system appropriately by offering the choice of consultations via the Internet, email, telephone or in person. Finally, a partner can provide more than financial support, it can help us get our message out by including our programs and materials in its own enterprise.
