William C. Apgar is a senior scholar at Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies and a lecturer in public policy at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. He is a former assistant secretary of housing at HUD. Affordable housing is one of his main areas of interest. He is a founding member of […]

The Federal Home Loan Bank system works to increase the amount of money available for loans for affordable housing and community development. Its home page has links to its 12 regional banks.

HUD has an Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives. The website links to HUD faith-based liaisons in each state and links to information about homes and communities by state.

Shaun Donovan is secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. HUD, the nation’s housing agency, is charged with increasing homeownership, particularly among minorities, and creating affordable housing.

The Local Initiatives Support Corp. helps resident-led, community-based development organizations turn distressed neighborhoods into healthy ones and works to increase the amount of affordable housing. Its home page links to 30 offices across the country.

Jerry Konohia is CEO of the OpenDoor Housing Fund, which provides financing for affordable housing to nonprofit and for-profit developers and tenant associations in the Washington, D.C., area. It was created in July 2007 through the merger of the Washington Area Housing Trust Fund and the Unitarian Universalist Affordable Housing Corp. It has a subfund […]

Enterprise Community Partners helps build affordable housing for low-income Americans by providing financing and expertise to community and housing developers. It has begun a new push to partner with congregations. It has offered workshops to teach clergy about tax credits and other issues and also bought property from churches in order to build affordable housing.

The National Low Income Housing Coalition wants to end “America’s affordable housing crisis” and is active in pushing the National Affordable Housing Trust Fund Act in Congress.

The Foundation Beyond Belief is a charitable and educational organization created “to focus, encourage and demonstrate the generosity and compassion of atheists and humanists.” Each quarter the foundation designates 10 charities to be recipients of its members’ donations. Dale McGowan is executive director.