The Detroit Neighborhood Initiative, announced by Mayor Mike Duggan last week, allows Detroit residents to purchase a home and secure a mortgage with no down payment, closing costs or fees at below-market rates.

“This new mortgage program is going to make home ownership possible for a lot of Detroiters who currently are renting,” Mayor Mike Duggan said to The Detroit News. “It’s also going to be a great boost for our Land Bank auction program because it will allow bidders to borrow up to 150% of the value of an auction property. That means they also can access the funds they need to renovate the property and move in.”

Residents who attended the workshop, held at Pure Word Missionary Baptist Church, were surprised at the opportunity of homeownership the package makes possible.

“I was surprised at the no down payment, no fees, and no credit check,” Hoyal Glaster, 37, of Detroit, a first-time home buyer looking forward to utilizing the package said. “I didn’t know it existed before they (NACA) came to Detroit.”

“They helped me understand a lot about buying a home…and how to get a mortgage,” he said.

NACA, which has more than two million members according to its website, is a non-profit counseling agency that works to provide home owners with mortgages and helps modify current mortgages.

Bruce Mark, founder and CEO of NACA, which is certified by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, called the event “historic” and “life changing” for participants.

“It’s certainly the largest home buying event in Detroit history,” Mark said. “It shows the upward swing and reflects huge pent-up demand for home ownership.”

“Part of meeting the demand is having the workshops,” Mark said. “Detroit is a tremendous opportunity for the NACA program and home ownership.”

Demand for home ownership is so high that the workshop had to cap participants at 5,000, Mark said, but he estimates 10,000 people will go through the program in the coming weeks either online or over the phone.

“It’s the largest demand in the country ever,” he said, noting that NACA will soon be opening an office in Detroit. NACA currently has 37 offices across the country.

“When you can purchase a house for $5K and get $55K for renovations, PITI (monthly principal, interest, taxes and insurance rate) is $397 forever…that’s life changing,” Mark said. “No down payment, no closing costs, no fees…all based on a current interest rate of 3.5 percent.”

The Neighborhood Assistance Corporation of America (“NACA”) is a non-profit, community advocacy and homeownership organization. NACA’s primary goal is to build strong, healthy neighborhoods in urban and rural areas nationwide through affordable homeownership. NACA has made the dream of homeownership a reality for thousands of working people by counseling them honestly and effectively, enabling even those with poor credit to purchase a home or modify their predatory loan with far better terms than those provided even in the prime market.

Investing in working people
The NACA homeownership program is our answer to the huge subprime and predatory lending industry. NACA has conclusively shown that when working people get the benefit of a prime rate loan, they can resolve their financial problems, make their mortgage payments and become prime borrowers. NACA’s track record of helping people who have credit problems become homeowners or modify their predatory loan debunks the myth that high rates and fees are necessary to compensate for their “credit risk.”

Started in 1988, NACA has a tremendous track record of successful advocacy against predatory and discriminatory lenders as well as providing the best mortgage program in America with $10 billion in funding commitments. NACA is the largest housing services organization in the country and is rapidly expanding by growing its existing 30+ offices, headquartered in Boston, MA, opening many new offices nationwide, and expanding the services it offers its membership. NACA’s confrontational community organizing and unprecedented mortgage program have set the national standard for assisting low- and moderate-income people to achieve the dream of homeownership.

NACA – America’s Best Mortgage Program
The incredible NACA mortgage allows NACA Members to purchase their homes with:

• no down payment,
• no closing costs,
• no fees,
• no requirement for perfect credit,
• and at a below-market interest rate.

Everyone gets the same incredible terms, including the below-market interest rate, regardless of their credit score or other factors. NACA also provides free, comprehensive housing services. NACA counsels Members into the extraordinary NACA mortgage using character-based lending criteria that takes each Member’s circumstances into account to determine whether they are ready for homeownership and what they can afford. This is in contrast to risk-based pricing where people are often given loans they cannot afford while brokers and others make tremendous fees and profits.

Property renovation and foreclosure prevention
NACA also provides property renovation assistance and Membership Assistance for NACA homeowners. NACA’s Home and Neighborhood Development (“HAND”) Department addresses repair issues, and where appropriate provides rehab assistance throughout the renovation process. NACA’s Membership Assistance Program (MAP) provides comprehensive counseling for Members who are delinquent on their home payments, including establishing payment agreements and providing financial assistance to help Members avoid foreclosure.

Innovative technology
The NACA program has developed state-of-the-art mortgage software for web-based counseling, processing and underwriting., called “NACA Lynx”, which is the envy of the mortgage industry. This is a paperless system that allows for character lending, loan processing and underwriting to be done on a very large scale.

Powerful national advocacy
NACA has revolutionized mortgage lending with its mortgage services and advocacy. NACA’s organizing department continues the aggressive advocacy against predatory lenders and the fight for economic justice. NACA is a high-profile organization, with its program and advocacy featured in the national media, including the Wall Street Journal, Prime Time Live, Boston Globe, Washington Post, major news outlets, and local networks nationwide.

NACA’s committed staff and contacting NACA
Our staff of hundreds of dedicated staff is committed to working with you to access this incredible mortgage product and to advocate for strong neighborhoods and economic justice. We are always looking for qualified staff—see our current job listings for details. To keep updated on NACA services, campaigns, and relevant legislative happenings, sign up by clicking Contact Us.