Century Housing Wins Grant for Strategy to Expand Its Financing Services

Culver City, December, 10, 2012 — Today, Century Housing learned that it won a $10,000 planning grant from the Wells Fargo NEXT Awards for Opportunity Finance, the nation’s largest awards program for responsible finance. Century Housing will use the funding to develop an expansion strategy to create new financial products to help it better serve low-wealth individuals and families in California. 
 
The NEXT Awards are investments in the next generation of community development financial institutions (CDFIs) working to expand their product offerings or to expand their service area. CDFIs are private financial institutions that are 100 percent dedicated to delivering responsible, affordable lending to help low-income, low-wealth, and other disadvantaged people and communities join the economic mainstream.
 
Century Housing was one of just six CDFIs selected from a competitive pool of 33 applicants nationwide. Century plans to use the funds to grow its strategy in sourcing capital directed to reliable financing of affordable housing development.
 
 “We are grateful to the NEXT Awards Selection Committee for awarding us a planning grant so that we may continue to expand our ability to support developers building critically needed housing,” said Ron Griffith, President & CEO of Century Housing. “This grant will help position us better to apply for future funding that would enable the flexible financing our developer clients need to build more homes for more people in distressed communities.”
 
Century Housing’s mission is to invest in homes and communities so that low income individuals and families may have a dignified living environment, achieve economic independence, and enjoy healthful and vital places to live and work. Century has financed more than 19,000 affordable homes by delivering more than $650 million in financing throughout California.
 
“Congratulations to Century for winning a NEXT Planning Grant,” said Mark Pinsky, President and CEO of Opportunity Finance Network (OFN,) the organization managing the NEXT Awards. “In its application, Century demonstrated that it is ready to conduct research to help it successfully develop an expansion plan that would allow it to bring more needed products and services to serve more people in California.”
 
The Wells Fargo NEXT Awards in partnership with the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation and the Kresge Foundation has celebrated the innovation of the nation’s most promising CDFIs by awarding more than $50 million through a competitive awards process over the last six years (2007-2012).
 
# # #
 
About The Awards
The Wells Fargo NEXT Awards for Opportunity Finance celebrate the CDFI industry —its creativity, accomplishments and enduring importance. Launched in 2007, the program has awarded more than $50 million to the nation’s most promising CDFIs via a competitive awards process. The goal of the NEXT Awards for 2012–2016 is to recognize the NEXT generation of CDFIs working towards expanding coverage in underserved communities. The NEXT Awards are presented by Opportunity Finance Network with funding from Wells Fargo, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, and The Kresge Foundation.
 
Century Housing is a leader in the origination of pre-development, acquisition, bridge, and construction financing for affordable housing throughout California and has assisted in the development of more than 19,000 safe, decent and affordable homes and apartments.
 
Opportunity Finance Network (OFN), the leading network of private financial institutions, creates growth that is good for communities, investors, individuals, and the economy. Members of OFN are community development financial institutions (CDFIs) that deliver responsible lending to help low-wealth and low- income communities join the economic mainstream. Through 2010, OFN’s Network originated more than $24.2 billion in financing in urban, rural, and Native communities, and financed 782,907 housing units, 64,391 business and microenterprises, 7,674 community facilities, and created or retained 317,052 jobs. More information is available at: www.opportunityfinance.net.

Contact Information

Beulah Ku

Director of Business Development

Century Housing Corporation

bku@centuryhousing.org