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HCLF Names New CEO

Tue, 09 Jul 2024 19:29:00 GMT

HARTFORD, CT – The Board of Directors of the Hartford Community Loan Fund (HCLF) has announced the selection of the organization’s new Chief Executive Officer. Michael B. Haynes, a senior leader with a New York City-based community development financial institution (CDFI), has succeeded founding CEO Rex Fowler, who announced plans to leave the role earlier this year. Haynes’s selection follows a nearly five-month nationwide search overseen by Koya Partners, an executive search firm working exclusively with CDFIs and other mission-driven clients. Haynes assumed the role on July 8th .

“The HCLF board is very excited to bring Michael Haynes on board as our new CEO,” said Board Chair Anna Emanuel. “Michael’s experience in the field of community development financial institutions, along with his extensive lending and loan servicing background, made him the ideal candidate to lead the Loan Fund in our plans for continued growth and impact of the financing products and services we want to offer to our community.”

Haynes comes to HCLF from the Center for New York City Neighborhoods (CNYCN) where he served as Vice President of Lending and Loan Servicing. CNYCN is a CDFI providing financing for homeowners throughout the State of New York with several lending initiatives focused on NYC’s five boroughs. Prior to his work at CNYCN Haynes spent 14 years at Neighborhood Housing Services of New Haven (NHS), most recently serving as Director of Real Estate Development. Previously at NHS Haynes created and oversaw the organization’s community development lending initiative which included the formation of a related non-profit lending company. While at both CNYCN and NHS,

Haynes played an integral in raising capital critical for the support of community development and affordable housing initiatives. Haynes has a master’s degree in Real Estate and Construction Management from the University of Denver, an MBA from the University of New Haven, and a bachelor’s degree from Howard University.

Haynes is only the second CEO in the history of HCLF, which was led by Fowler since the organization’s founding as the South Hartford Initiative in 1997. Under Fowler’s leadership the non-profit lender evolved into a model of public and private collaboration managing assets of $24 million. Since the launch of HCLF’s construction-rehab loan program in 2010 HCLF has provided more than $47 million in financing to rehab over 240 small multifamily properties, leveraged another $33 million in additional financing, and created over 1,300 units of affordable housing. While HCLF now lends statewide, approximately 75% of its investments have historically been for the renovation of properties in the city of Hartford.

Emanuel said Haynes’s combination of leadership experience in community development lending, affordable housing development, homeownership preservation, and non-profit administration make him well-suited to succeed Fowler and help the organization continue its recent growth trajectory.

Haynes’s career in the affordable housing sector began over 20 years ago working at the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development, where he originated loans for real estate developers to finance the construction and renovation of affordable housing projects statewide.

Haynes said he was impressed by HCLF's core values and strategic direction while building strategic alliances within the CDFI community to help foster the organization's continued growth.

“I greatly appreciate HCLF’s commitment to putting affordable capital into the hands of diverse borrowers who have historically faced obstacles in securing financing for critical community projects. I’m eager to work with the Loan Fund’s staff to expand the organization’s impact even further,” Haynes said.

CEO will step down in 2024

Wed, 20 Mar 2024 16:26:00 GMT

Executive search firm Koya Partners retained to conduct a nationwide search for next CEO HARTFORD, CT (Feb. 29, 2024) – The founding CEO of Hartford Community Loan Fund (HCLF) has announced plans to leave the organization later in 2024, as soon as HCLF’s Board has identified the organization’s next CEO. Rex Fowler has led the not-for-profit community development financial institution since its founding in 1997, expanding the geographic reach of its lending territory from the south end of Hartford to the state of Connecticut. The HCLF board has partnered with Koya Partners, an executive search firm working exclusively with mission-driven clients, to conduct a nationwide search for a new CEO. HCLF provides just and affordable financial services that benefit low-wealth residents in the communities it serves.

“It is hard to overstate the breadth of Rex’s contributions to this organization and to the greater Hartford community in his nearly three decades at the helm of HCLF,” said Board Chair Anna Emanuel. “Filling his very big shoes will require an exceptionally ambitious search, which is why the board is undertaking a national search to identify the organization’s next leader.”

Fowler brought extensive financial services expertise to his role as CEO. Before joining HCLF he worked for Fleet Financial Group (now Bank of America), working in a range of roles that included creating and leading the bank’s corporate healthcare lending team, commercial lending positions in various Connecticut markets, and creating and leading the bank’s commercial credit analysis training department in Boston.

In addition to his work at HCLF, Fowler has served on the boards of numerous Hartford nonprofits including Hartford Catholic Worker, Hartford Land Bank, the Hartford Parking Authority, North Hartford Partnership, Real Art Ways, and the Mutual Housing Association of Greater Hartford. A longtime resident of Hartford’s Northeast neighborhood, he is also the founder and past board president of north end-based Hartford City Mission, served on a variety of mayoral task forces, was chair of the Housing Committee of the Northeast Neighborhood Revitalization Zone (NRZ), and was an organizer with Hartford Debate ’96, the group behind the 1996 Presidential Debate in Hartford.

HCLF began as the South Hartford Initiative (SHI), a non-profit loan fund dedicated to Hartford's south end neighborhoods. SHI was one of Connecticut’s first certified community development financial institutions.

"I’m really proud of the work we’ve done getting more capital into the hands of folks who’ve historically struggled to access affordable credit," said the outgoing CEO, adding that approximately 89% of HCLF loans have been to non-white borrowers. "I’m excited about the next phase of life and firmly believe that HCLF is in a great position to continue growing and serving even more Connecticut residents.”

After leaving HCLF Fowler said he plans to spend some time with family before pursuing other professional opportunities.

HCLF's primary lending initiative is its construction rehab loan program, which includes construction, bridge, and permanent loans for small investors acquiring and renovating blighted multifamily or mixeduse properties in Connecticut. In addition to lending, HCLF provides technical assistance to its borrowers and advocates for policy changes designed to increase investments in marginalized communities.

Since its construction rehab program was launched in 2010, HCLF has provided more than $45 million and leveraged an additional $33 million to rehab over 240 small multifamily properties. The investments have created over 1,200 new units of housing affordable for low-income households with approximately 75 percent of those in the city of Hartford. In 2019, HCLF expanded its geographic investment area to facilitate financing across Connecticut, with the aim of being a catalyst for an increase in the quality and quantity of safe and affordable housing units throughout the state.

In its new CEO, HCLF is seeking “an effective big picture strategist and leader to build on the organization’s successful history and evolving vision for increased impact in the future.” Interested individuals can find more information at: https://diversifiedsearchgroup.com/search/20443-hartfordcommunity-loan-fund-ceo/ .

HCLF’s CEO Rex Fowler recently sat down for an interview with the National Community Reinvestment Coalition to discuss the role banks can play in working more collaboratively with CDFIs to create a...

Wed, 08 Feb 2023 16:30:00 GMT

HCLF’s CEO Rex Fowler recently sat down for an interview with the National Community Reinvestment Coalition to discuss the role banks can play in working more collaboratively with CDFIs to create a more equitable and inclusive platform for capital investments across the US. Read on ....

HCLF is proud to partner with Hartford Land Bank to convert formerly blighted properties into beautiful, affordable homes for Hartford families.

Tue, 02 Aug 2022 14:30:00 GMT

We’re also proud of our borrowers like Jose Salazar who do such great work in tackling tough projects like 471 Garden Street read on.

Reliance on a credit score for lending decisions locks too many out of the market for accessing affordable capital.

Thu, 02 Jun 2022 13:42:00 GMT

That’s why we don’t rely on credit scores, especially for our black and brown applicants, who are unjustly ‘redlined’ by the current credit scoring system. Read this article to learn more about why the current system penalizes many residents of color and how these residents typically pay more of their hard-earned income operating in the ‘unbanked’ system (sadly, as the map in the article shows: of all states east of the Mississippi River, only Mississippi has a higher % of unbanked residents than Connecticut). Read on

Recognize the building on the front page of Sunday’s Hartford Courant? Yep – it’s the Jacobson Building!

Tue, 15 Feb 2022 16:27:00 GMT

The Jacobson Building, the mixed-use property in Hartford that HCLF owns and occupies. We see our building as an extension of our mission – from how it’s been rehabbed from a formerly vacant, fire-damaged neighborhood eyesore to the incredible people who now live here and operate their businesses here. Excited to receive a grant from the HartLift program launched by the City of Hartford and Hartford Chamber of Commerce – CT to help us complete the interior renovations on our property later this spring, with two new businesses moving into the Jacobson to serve our neighborhood. Once the interior work is complete, we’ll dig up the asphalt in front of the business entries and install a beautiful landscaped plaza around our property read on.

HCLF has been one of several community organizations working with residents to create a development plan for the area around Main/Albany.

Thu, 11 Nov 2021 15:58:00 GMT

HCLF has been one of several community organizations working with residents to create a development plan for the area around Main/Albany read on. .

HCLF is proud of the great work our borrowers are doing to renovate historic properties in our communities.

Fri, 05 Nov 2021 18:54:00 GMT

HCLF is proud of the great work our borrowers are doing to renovate historic properties in our communities. Check out the recently renovated property now leasing in Hartford’s north end, completed by HCLF borrower Vincencia Adusei (read on) , and a long-awaited project currently underway in New Britain, led by HCLF borrower Doug Bromfeld (read on) .

HCLF is excited to partner with the Hartford Land Bank!

Fri, 05 Nov 2021 18:24:00 GMT

HCLF is excited to partner with the Hartford Land Bank to provide low-cost financing to buyers of HLB properties. This initiative is specifically for developers (whether participating in Land Bank training or not) buying, rehabbing, and selling Hartford Land Bank properties to homeowners.

HCLF is one of several organizations supporting Hartford residents working to bring a supermarket and health-promoting services to the Main/Albany intersection.

Tue, 05 Oct 2021 19:23:00 GMT

HCLF is one of several organizations supporting Hartford residents working to bring a supermarket and health-promoting services to the Main/Albany intersection. As part of this effort, the resident advisory group has persuaded the city to engage the community in the creation of a master plan for the area around Main/Albany. The consultant the city retained to lead this effort, Bergmann Associates, wants to hire a city resident on a part-time basis to help lead this effort. If interested, respond asap! Read on...

Gathering at Hartford's Newest Café

Fri, 17 Sep 2021 19:09:00 GMT

Friends, New & Old - We'll be gathering at Hartford's newest café and coffee shop, Semilla, on Main Street just north of Downtown to learn a little more about and discuss three topics:

Downtown North development
The planning for a grocery and Healthy Hartford Hub
Complete streets and planning for the safer redesign of the Main Street and Albany Ave intersection

Nearby neighbors, those that work nearby, business owners, City of Hartford staff, and local leaders get together to learn, connect, and build a stronger and more resilient community. Spread the word!

FREE! --> One coffee, tea, or juice beverage will be complementary for attendees at the meetup. We'll also have bus passes, while supplies last, one each for attendees.

Multimodal Meetup @ Semilla Café

1283 Main Street

Friday, October 29th

7:00 AM – 9:00 AM

Welcome to Judith Rothschild, Hartford’s new Director of Blight Remediation.

Thu, 08 Apr 2021 19:19:00 GMT

Good to see the city moving forward on implementing and enforcing provisions of the major housing code overhaul approved in 2019. HCLF supports all efforts to improve the quality of affordable housing in Hartford and throughout Connecticut. Read on

Hartford Land Bank has its first two properties for sale!

Wed, 07 Apr 2021 13:16:00 GMT

HCLF may be able to help with the prequal letter required to be submitted with your application. Don’t wait - applications are due 4/29 and you must tour the property in person to apply! Contact HCLF’s Director of Lending, Calvin Richardson, to discuss HCLF rehab financing for either of these properties. Read

Good news for the smallest CT-based businesses

Mon, 22 Feb 2021 15:27:00 GMT

PPP $ are reserved especially for you over the next two weeks. Read on...

Putting the Federal Fair Act to work for a better Connecticut

Mon, 08 Feb 2021 17:58:00 GMT

Did you know the entire state of Connecticut is among the top 10% of segregated communities in the US? More than 2/3 of non-white residents live in only 15 of our state’s 169 towns. Our friends at Open Communities Alliance ( www.ctoca.org ) are doing great work to both uncover and address discrimination and segregation across our state. Take a few minutes to read their latest report ‘Putting the Federal Fair Housing Act to work for a Better Connecticut’.

CHFA Multifamily Announcement

Tue, 17 Nov 2020 16:52:00 GMT

The State of Connecticut is now expanding its temporary rental housing assistance program to landlords who have tenants unable to keep current on rent due to factors related to Covid-19. This is great news for HCLF borrowers and other landlords. Read on...

Lamont Extends Coronavirus Eviction Moratorium to Jan 1st.

Tue, 20 Oct 2020 20:44:00 GMT

While the recent eviction moratoriums have helped renters, they’ve hurt many small, local landlords. The relief is, however, limited to six months of unpaid rent. ( Read the NBC30 Story here )

If you’re connected to statewide landlord associations which may be organizing to support payments to landlords during the pandemic, please let us know so we can notify others in the HCLF family of landlords/borrowers about such efforts (you can send us a message here .) Some groups discussing such efforts include the CT Property Owners Association ( www.ctpoa.com ), and the CT Coalition of Property Owners ( www.ccopo.com )

HCLF partners with City for Northend Rehab

Tue, 20 Oct 2020 20:24:00 GMT

Partnering with the City of Hartford's Housing division, HCLF recently financed developer Carol Reid’s gut rehab of a fire damaged multifamily home at 97 Williams Street, in the City’s Clay Arsenal neighborhood. HCLF and Reid, a repeat HCLF borrower, combined the HCLF loan with city financing and historic tax credits from the State (bought by Eversource as a community investment) to pull together the capital needed to fully renovate the 3-family home in the city’s northend. Upon completion, Reid sold the property to an owner occupant.

Hartford Land Banks is Seeking Developers

Tue, 20 Oct 2020 19:38:00 GMT

The Hartford Land Bank is a newly formed nonprofit which will work with the city to dispose of city-owned properties to for-profit or nonprofit developers. City-owned properties will be transferred from the City to the Land Bank which will secure and maintain properties, while also addressing any title, environmental, or structural issues, or other factors that would make development difficult. The Land Bank will then sell properties to qualified developers to acquire and rehab, then either hold as investment properties or sell to homeowners. For the list of the first seven properties the Land Bank will be selling to developers and to read more about the Land Bank, click Here ). While it’s unlikely the Land Bank will dispose of properties before 2021, if you have interest in connecting w/ the Land Bank about these or future development opportunities, email the executive director Laura Settlemyer @ Laura@HartfordLandBank.org .

Hartford Holding Tax Deed Auction Oct 24th.

Wed, 07 Oct 2020 18:55:00 GMT

Buy the tax deed on a tax delinquent property at this month's auction & you could own that prpoerty six months later. Tax deeds auctioned can be redeemed (repaid) by the property’s original owner, with interest, but if not, the buyer takes title to the property following the mandatory redemption period. You can see the list of properties (subject to change) and read more details regarding the auction on the city of Hartford’s website Here

North Hartford Needs a Grocery Store

Sun, 05 May 2019 19:21:23 GMT

By AMBER ELLIOTT
SPECIAL TO HARTFORD COURANT
MAY 05, 2019 | 6:00 AM

As a person who lives in Clay Arsenal, works in the Northeast neighborhood and has a young child who recently was accepted to Capital Prep Magnet School, it’s clear to me that North Hartford needs a full-service grocery store, and the location behind Keney Clock Tower is ideal.

North Hartford needs access to healthy, high-quality, affordable food. Residents’ health and life expectancy is suffering directly because of the foods that are (or are not) accessible.

According to CT Health Foundation, those of us living in the North Hartford Promise Zone live nearly 16 years less than people in West Hartford, just three miles away. Recent studies also show that we experience far higher rates of diabetes, hypertension and obesity. In order to combat these diet-related diseases that are killing residents, we need access to healthy, high-quality foods at prices we can afford.

New Initiative to Build Credit for Hartford Residents

Tue, 01 May 2012 20:16:03 GMT

In the spring of 2012, a two-story colonial house in East Hartford got a very excited new owner. Former Northend renter Jennifer Mathis bought the hundred-year-old historic home with help from a credit-building loan offered by the Hartford Community Loan Fund (HCLF). The three-bedroom house, with its spacious back yard and front porch, is a dream come true for Mathis. "This house means everything to me. Now I have something I can give my kids. I've been trying forever [to get a mortgage], but I was always turned down, even for small loans. And every time I applied for mortgages my credit wasn't where it was supposed to be, or I wasn't making enough money to qualify to have a home. So this . . . is the biggest accomplishment of my life."

In 2010 Mathis signed up to participate in an Individual Development Account (IDA) program run by a Hartford-based nonprofit. Through the IDA, personal savings are matched by state or federal funds toward specific goals such as buying a house, paying for education, or starting a business. To help repair her credit, financial counselors at the organization connected Mathis to the Hartford Community Loan Fund to apply for an IDA-Secured Credit Builder Loan.

A new financial solution offering introduced by HCLF in 2011, the Credit Builder Loan represents a unique product in a financial landscape which generally offers few credit-building options for consumers with low credit scores. Through the Credit Builder Loan, Mathis borrowed just over $300 from HCLF to pay off a dental bill. Over the next year her record of on-time monthly payments on the loan contributed to an increase of more than 50 points in her credit score, paving the way for approval of an affordable mortgage loan.

Of the sample data collected for HCLF by the Woodstock Institute, more than 50% of residents in Hartford's primarily African-American/West Indian neighborhoods (zip codes 06120 and 06112) had credit scores below 620

Mathis's previous credit struggles are unfortunately the norm for most adult residents of Hartford's northend and other communities of color. Recent analysis of credit score data by HCLF revealed significant disparities in credit scores among Hartford area zip codes. Of the sample data collected for HCLF by the Woodstock Institute, more than 50% of residents in Hartford's primarily African-American/West Indian neighborhoods (zip codes 06120 and 06112) had credit scores below 620, a common boundary determining access to affordable credit and products like traditional mortgage loans. In Hartford's largely Hispanic southend neighborhoods, approximately 40% of residents had credit scores below 620. By contrast, in most of Hartford's predominantly white and more affluent suburbs, less than 10% of adult residents had credit scores below 620.

Sitting in her family's new living room, Mathis reflected on her own experience. "I first figured out that credit was important in the process of buying a house. I kept thinking, why is it so hard to get a house? At the time I thought [I might qualify for a mortgage] if they see I'm faithfully paying my rent with no late fees, that I was never, ever evicted, had no bounced checks or anything...but they don't consider rental payments in your credit score."

"I wish they taught this stuff in school," said Mathis. "When I first graduated from high school, I was young and they just send you the credit card applications. And the next thing you know you've got these credit cards and you could just go shopping and just say 'charge it', not realizing you have to pay for this bill. So it starts from there. But we live and we learn. And I've learned. And I can pass that on to my kids."

Along with financial coaching offered through the IDA program, homebuyer counseling helped Mathis fill in the gaps in her financial management education. In addition to walking her through the steps of choosing a realtor, an attorney, and buying insurance, the homebuyer program helped her understand how credit history gets reported and what actions she could take to improve her personal credit score. "The thing with the IDA program," says Mathis, "is some people think that they're supposed to do the work for you. That's not what it's all about. You have to do the work yourself. They just provide the information to get you educated and support your savings. And that's where HCLF comes in to help those who have low credit or no credit - to help increase their credit to where it needs to be. The people at the Loan Fund were very, very helpful. They did a lot of follow up. They're working with you, not working against you. I wish more people knew about this program."

When Mathis finally moved into her new home, the box springs to her daughter's bed wouldn't fit over the top railing of the stairs. Her brother decided to remove the stair railing temporarily. "And that's when I realized - I can knock a wall down if I want to!" laughed Mathis. "I could paint the walls green if I want to! I can do whatever I want, because it's mine!"

"It's a good feeling," she continued, "I'm still in shock. When I first got the keys I just cried. I cried on the way to the attorney's office. I cried coming out of the attorney's office. I cried when I walked in the house. I'm about to cry now. I finally did it."

I Find the Love Right Here

Sun, 01 Apr 2012 20:39:51 GMT

I saw the potential in the building, so I bought it and thought later on I'd fix it. I never knew how hard it would be to get a loan. Everywhere I tried turned me down. The house had been sitting there vacant for two years when the city of Hartford sent a letter notifying me that they would knock the building down and send me a bill for thirty-five-thousand dollars! I went everywhere for a loan—including the bank where I have a business account in good standing. But even they wouldn't budge because lending money for a construction rehab project in a neighborhood like this one is too risky for them. And banks like that want your credit to be a certain way and want to make sure that you make "x" amount of dollars.

Sohodra Dilchand is a Hartford resident of 16 years who acquired a fire-damaged, vacant two-family home in Hartford's Clay Arsenal neighborhood. Hartford Community Loan Fund provided a $170,000 construction-rehab loan to Ms. Dilchand, facilitating the rehab of the historic home.

I had a great team from the Loan Fund...working on my loan from beginning to end.

But finally someone from the city wanted to help me and gave me the number for the Hartford Community Loan Fund. From there everything went nice and smooth. I had a great team from the Loan Fund...working on my loan from beginning to end. Hats off to good people like them. The Loan Fund made the whole process so easy that I feel much more confident thinking about a second rehab project, and I've already recommended them to others, including my mother. The rehab project took six months, and it was done beautifully.

I had a vision for the property. I've been a landlord for ten years. When you do that kind of work, you see women with so many kids. These women would always ask if there was place they could rent with more bedrooms. I thought, "Let me make some mother of so many kids happy." So I set the house up in a way that there are 2 full bathrooms, and when you step out of the bathroom there's the washer and dryer. A mom with a baby doesn't have to go downstairs to do the wash. There's a beautiful kitchen, a full dining room. Kids can have their own section upstairs. If the mom has a lot of groceries she can pull up to the back door and bring them right to the kitchen. I even put the fuse box in her kitchen so if a fuse blows and I'm not around, she can trip it right there without having to leave her babies to fix it.

See, I have a love and a passion for being a landlord. If someone doesn't like to do it, you see it in the property--the grass grows high, the fence falls. But I'm from here. I work here, I live here. I do not invest anywhere else but Hartford. I find the love right here. I want to stay here and provide homes for people. I'm glad there's the Loan Fund that can make it happen, located right here in Hartford too.

Foreclosure Prevention Program Offers Relief for Hartford Homeowners

Thu, 01 Mar 2012 20:44:29 GMT

Rosalind Cobb was shocked the day in June 2013 when she arrived at her home to find a foreclosure notice in the doorway of her 3-family property in Hartford's northend. Cobb had owned the Enfield Street house for more than 20 years, and had been diligent in making payments on time. That is, until the recession. A few years ago, like millions across the country, Rosalind Cobb and her family had experienced a series of hardships: after 31 years with Travelers, she was included in a large round of layoffs, and an adult daughter who rented one of the two apartments upstairs was diagnosed with breast cancer, losing her job after enduring multiple surgeries.

The family kept up with bills as best they could, but for a time fell behind on their mortgage and property taxes. While the Connecticut Housing Finance Authority (CHFA) worked with Cobb on her first mortgage, the City liened the property for back taxes, then sold the Cobbs' liens – with hundreds of others - to Florida-based American Tax Funding (ATF). For several years ATF had quietly held the liens – which accrue interest at 18% - and then initiated the foreclosure action.

"I was trying to pay ATF some on the delinquent tax bill and also still pay the City on the current taxes," Cobb explained, "and I thought I was set up with ATF to make payments to them. So when I got the letter from their attorney about the foreclosure, I was so confused. I called ATF, but they said they couldn't talk to me since they were taking me to court. They said to look on the back of the summons for a list of places to call for help." Cobb began contacting every organization on the list, but "nobody could help us. They all said they were no longer taking clients for foreclosure, or else they had closed."

She learned from local activists that her northend neighborhood was facing a sizeable rash of foreclosures as American Tax Funding had "pulled in its papers."
Unsure where else to turn, Cobb even approached Hartford Mayor Pedro Segarra at an event in nearby Keney Park. "I didn't know what else to do. My friend encouraged me . . . said the Mayor was a good person and would listen," she said. After an email exchange, Segarra put Cobb in contact with Yasha Escalara, Director of the Housing and Property Management Division for the City of Hartford. Because the City is restricted from providing financing for payment of property taxes, Escalara contacted Hartford Community Loan Fund (HCLF) to see if the Loan Fund might help the long-time Hartford homeowner.

Research conducted in 2013 by HCLF revealed that over 1,000 property owners citywide had outstanding tax liens held by outside investors, including ATF.

HCLF was familiar with the impact of foreclosures resulting from the City's policy of tax lien sales. In the fall of 2012 HCLF had been approached by Butch Lewis, a longtime northend resident who had received notice of foreclosure on his Vine Street home of 40 years, resulting from tax liens he didn't know existed, but that had also been sold to ATF. Research conducted in 2013 by HCLF revealed that over 1,000 property owners citywide had outstanding tax liens held by outside investors, including ATF. More than 300 of those, like Butch Lewis, had foreclosure actions filed against them. Many of these were elderly homeowners, and the majority were in the city's northend neighborhoods.

Working with City officials, in 2013 HCLF created a Tax Lien Refinance initiative available to Hartford property owners facing foreclosure by tax lien investors; consequently Naveed Sobhan, Director of Mortgage Lending for HCLF, was prepared to help when Cobb reached out to the organization. By that time Cobb had almost given up hope. After four months of explaining her case to multiple lawyers and community organizations, filing appeals, attending workshops, and waiting for return phone calls that never came, she would lie awake at night wondering what her family would do – where would they move?

"But then I started getting calls back from Naveed," said Cobb. "You don't know how important that was," she continued, "to have someone you can communicate with. He told me step-by- step how difficult my case was, but he worked with me to help me understand what we needed to do to save my house."

"I wish there were workshops to help us check in on our finances, so you'd know if you're doing it the right way, not to mention help you when you're facing foreclosure. The people who were supposed to help couldn't do much for us, and I didn't know what to make of all the legal language." HCLF's Sobhan agreed and added, "A problem that we face all the time is how very little help there is for people facing foreclosure. There's clearly a need for more high quality financial coaching resources in our community." Sobhan mentioned that, like the Cobbs and Butch Lewis, many Hartford homeowners facing tax lien foreclosure maintain good credit and have a strong track record of paying their bills on time.

HCLF's foreclosure prevention plan would require collaboration with Mrs. Cobb's existing mortgage lenders, CHFA and the City of Hartford, along with the Connecticut Housing Investment Fund (CHIF), which serviced both mortgages. The entire process took Mrs. Cobb and HCLF staff nearly nine months to complete, but in June, 2014 – a year after receiving the initial foreclosure notice at her front door – Rosalind Cobb closed on an affordable foreclosure prevention loan with HCLF that paid off the 18% tax lien obligation that had threatened her family with the loss of their home.

Rosalind Cobb, her daughter, and her long-time third floor tenant were relieved they could forgo the chore of packing moving boxes, and Mrs. Cobb has since slept much more peacefully at night, confident they'll all be in their Enfield Street home for many years to come.

Give Credit to this Contractor

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 20:52:18 GMT

Jhonny Herrera came to Hartford from his native Peru “with empty pockets and a goal to just work,” he explained on a hot summer day while walking through one of his investment properties. With help from the Hartford Community Loan Fund (HCLF) Herrera has now rehabbed several multi-family homes in Hartford’s south end neighborhoods and has become one of HCLF’s most successful borrowers.

In 1998, when Herrera arrived in the US at age 26, he didn’t know anything about construction - “not even how to handle a hammer,” he laughed, “or what sheet rock was - because we don’t use sheet rock in Peru! Everything was new.” After studying English for two years, Herrera got a construction job abating toxic lead paint in old buildings, and learned how to work on everything from roofs to foundations.

In 2003 Herrera used his knowledge of remodeling to buy and fix up his first investment property in Hartford. After the building’s apartments were leased, Herrera tried to get a construction loan from a traditional bank to purchase and rehab a second property. “But even if you have good credit, a bank doesn’t want to take the risk,” he said. “It’s not personal—it’s only numbers (to the bank). They’re not going to trust you, or even sit with you.” Herrera continued, “It’s easy to understand what a difference the Loan Fund made for me when you consider that I rehabbed one house in 2003, then one in 2006, and another in 2010. But in 2013 I began working with HCLF. Since then I’ve added five more houses! With the Loan Fund, they know each person, the price of the house, what you need to do to make it work….. They monitor your progress. For a contractor and investor like me, it’s the best option - and you don’t have to work with those hard money lenders who kill you with interest.”

For Herrera, it’s satisfying to tend to buildings that were vacant and in disrepair when he first found them. Some of the properties he’s bought and rehabbed are on the same block as his own house. To Herrera, Hartford feels like home now. “I go back to visit my country, but I can’t be there for more than a week. Plus I have a lot of responsibility here. I can’t be away for a long time - phone calls keep coming,” he says with a smile.

Butch Lewis and Bill Breetz: Hartford Bridge Builders

Sun, 01 Jan 2012 20:58:17 GMT

“We had, you might say, a natural inclination to like each other,” says attorney Bill Breetz of his friendship with the late activist Butch Lewis. The affinity these Hartford mainstays shared is an example of the deep and broad connections each man forged on the streets of Hartford. Their ability to build bridges across difference, and their knowledge of how race and economics shape the lives of people in Hartford continues to inspire the Hartford Community Loan Fund in its efforts to align capital with justice.

Though Breetz and Lewis grew up in different environments, both had experiences of racial discrimination which set the course for their future work. Breetz, who has used his legal expertise to aid countless community development efforts in Hartford, grew up in Connecticut and was educated in what he described as “a white, privileged atmosphere.” But his experience as a law student working on a school desegregation case in Georgia in 1966 raised his awareness of race-related issues.

“The head of our team was a black guy,” Breetz said. “We went to Mrs. Smith’s Fine Foods, a diner in Atlanta, and four of us sat down for lunch. The entire restaurant went quiet. One by one, each of the diners left and stood outside. We’d waited 20 minutes for a menu, so finally I got up and went to one of the waitresses to ask for one. She threw a glass of iced tea on me. She said, ‘You white n-----! You’re worse than that [Black man] over there!’ I was stunned. Discrimination wasn’t real to me until it happened to me.”

Butch Lewis was born in Fredericksburg, Virginia, where racial discrimination was overt and omnipresent. “My hometown still has the original slave block that my great-great grandparents were sold off. At the theater, black people sat in the balcony, called the ‘crow’s nest,’ and you couldn’t go to the front door with the polished gold handles, you could only go in the side door. You always knew you were considered a second class citizen.”

Both men came to Hartford in the 1960s and continued to experience racial disparities. “After that summer in Atlanta, I joined a legal services program in Hartford,” Breetz shared. “The population I worked with was almost entirely people of color. So I got involved in issues that flow through legal services programs, like housing issues. I got to see how race affects people’s lives.” In his north end Albany Avenue office, Breetz met Lewis, who at the time had recently founded the Hartford chapter of the Black Panther Party.

Breetz remembers the Panthers “doing great work in Hartford because they were addressing the real needs of the community.” The legal services office and the Panthers, said Breetz, “took a shine to one another” and aided each other’s work. Breetz was an ally for Lewis after police tried to make him a scapegoat for inciting the 1968 riots in Hartford; meanwhile, Lewis supported Breetz’s work by making connections between the legal services office and members of the community who were experiencing discrimination.

Reacting against discrimination in the real estate market, both Lewis and Breetz decided on principal to settle in Hartford. Lewis said, “I could live in Wethersfield. I could buy a house in Bloomfield. But I chose to live here, to fight for my neighborhood. I feel that every child should be able to run from one corner to another as fast and free as they want, dodging no bullets.” Lewis organized a block watch group and helped lead efforts to shut down drug traffic near his home in an effort to keep his community safe. All the neighborhood kids called him “Uncle Butch,” and he made it a point to know everyone who walked by his Vine Street porch.

Breetz and his wife are similarly committed to the city. “Society can’t succeed if there isn’t a fair amount of interchange among people of different races and classes, and if there isn’t some form of economic justice.” Breetz added, “I don’t think we can legislate outcomes, but we can legislate opportunity. Much of the injustice that’s happened is a denial of opportunity.”

It was partly in response to this “denial of opportunity” that Breetz helped start the Connecticut Urban Law Initiative (CULI) at the UConn Law School in 1997. He served as director for 17 years, and cultivated a dual mission to provide a service learning opportunity for law students and to offer legal services to organizations in the community who couldn’t afford them otherwise. As Barbara McGrath, Bill’s colleague and current director of CULI stated, “Bill has always been a person to whom people could come when no one else was willing to address their situation because either it was too messy, too complex, or too political.”

In 2013, Lewis, who at the time had lived in his house for 40 years and already paid off his mortgage, was served foreclosure papers. Unbeknownst to him, the city of Hartford had sold property tax liens on his Vine Street home to a third party investor. Such investors earn interest of 18 percent on the back taxes, and can foreclose if they don't get paid. Lewis had no knowledge that a tax lien on his property even existed. He contacted Hartford Community Loan Fund for financial counsel and Breetz for legal assistance. Lewis then spoke out to City Council members against the practice. The incident led to the Council’s creation of a Tax Lien Task Force, to which Breetz and HCLF’s executive director Rex Fowler were appointed. Soon HCLF created a tax lien foreclosure prevention program to help homeowners like Lewis from losing their properties. As a result, Lewis was able to stay in his home with Virginia, his wife of 41 years, until he passed away in the fall of 2015.

It was on the porch of his Vine Street home a few months before his death that Lewis and Breetz got to reminisce about their friendship and their shared experiences through some tumultuous times in Hartford’s history. As they traded stories about friends and places they shared in common, it was clear that each had benefitted from the unique resources offered by the other, and that those resources had in turn moved beyond them into the city they have loved.