Tag Archive for: fundraising

Rural Recap – Expertise

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David’s Line: HAC’s 2025 Annual Report is Now Live

Hello and welcome to another edition of Rural Recap. I am pleased to announce the release of HAC’s 2025 annual report. The theme for this year’s edition is “HAC Expertise.” As you read through the stories we highlight from the past year, my hope is that you recognize both the importance of having strong, capable experts on staff, and the know how we bring from 55 years of working in small towns and rural places.

Whether it is preserving affordable rental housing properties around the country, analyzing the latest policy proposals in D.C., producing cutting edge research for a small community, or assembling the nation’s industry leaders for our biennial housing conference, HAC’s wide-ranging expertise makes it possible. Our experts are among the best in the business. They bring an array of skills and experience to focus on the future of rural communities. And bonus, they bring an energy to the work that is a joy to be around.

I invite you to read our annual report and see for yourself. The year 2025 posed a lot of questions about housing affordability in America, and 2026 is no different. HAC has what it takes to help address those questions head-on. The work continues, and I thank you for being here for it.

HACtivities

National Community Reinvestment Coalition’s Just Economy Conference

The National Community Reinvestment Coalition’s 2026 Just Economy Conference was held from April 14-15 in Washington, DC. HAC Board Chair Dr. Karama Neal and HAC Research Associate Meagan Mitchell Davis spoke on a panel entitled, “Heirs’ Property: Collaboration, Innovations, and Investments for Generational Wealth Preservation.” The discussion focused on research that suggests heirs’ property and title issues have contributed to land and property loss, particularly for Black and Indigenous households, and in low-income communities. The session also addressed successful solutions and further proposed innovations to shore up property inheritance processes for communities currently facing heirs’ property challenges. Learn more about Heirs’ Property issues at HAC’s new Heirs’ Property Central website.

Opportunity Zones

The IRS recently released guidance for governors to nominate places for designation as Opportunity Zones. HAC, in conjunction with Partners for Rural Transformation and Hope Enterprise, Inc. developed a guide of recommendations to help states make their Opportunity Zone designations in a way that will drive investments into rural communities facing persistent poverty. In addition to the guide, the partnering organizations also recorded a webinar for state policymakers, regional development hubs, and local non-profits to review these recommendations. You can access the guide of recommendations here, and watch the full webinar here.

Recaps

  • In the rural town of Bowling Green, Florida, affordable rental housing is both scarce and critically important to the stability of the community. So when it looked like the Azalea Apartments in Bowling Green faced an uncertain future, Florida Non-Profit Housing, Inc. (FNPH) reached out to HAC to help them preserve the property. Read the full Azalea Apartment success story on HAC’s website.
  • HAC proudly presents our 2025 Loan Fund Impact Report. In fiscal year 2025 (October 2024-September 2025), our Loan Fund provided $20.8 million in financing through 45 loans to build, rehabilitate, or preserve 1,253 affordable homes across 24 states and territories. That total includes 579 preserved rental homes, 224 new construction rental homes, and 450 for-sale homes. Read the full report here.
  • The House Appropriations Committee released its proposed FY27 funding bills for HUD and USDA in April. HAC conducted a full analysis of both proposals as they were released, including funding level tables that will be updated as the proposals move through the appropriations processes. Read the full analysis for HUD and USDA on HAC’s website.
  • HAC is hiring! Do you know someone who is passionate about serving the needs of rural communities in America? Perhaps that person is you? HAC is currently hiring in a number of different positions that advance the goals of affordable housing in rural America. Visit our Careers page, see what positions are available, and apply today!
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Rural Recap – Welcome Anjanette

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David’s Take

We do a lot of important, transformative work here at HAC, and the care and attention that goes into every step of this work is something that I hope is evident when you read Rural Recap. We have a great set of community partners, and our team is truly special.
Take for example Anjanette Brown, HAC’s new Chief Financial Officer. Anjanette first got to know our organization while Vice President of Accounting at longtime HAC partner Community Housing Partners (CHP) in Christiansburg, Virginia. She went from CHP to leadership roles at YWCA Metropolitan Chicago, Neighborhood Housing Services of Chicago, and The Resurrection Project. We are excited Anjanette returned to our world of rural housing, and we are thrilled she is doing so at HAC. Her financial management experience is extraordinary, and her commitment to helping rural people all over the country could not be clearer.
Once again, Rural Recap provides an update on the work HAC does to carry out its mission helping rural people achieve safe and affordable housing. Here are some highlights of the impact our partners and staff have made working together.

HACtivities

National Congress of American Indians Executive Council Winter Session

On February 10th, HAC CEO David Lipsetz attended the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) Executive Council Winter Session in Washington, DC. Sitting on a panel focused on Indian Housing, David talked about HAC’s 54-year history of lending in rural communities, touting stories of success in Native lands despite the challenges posed by limited resources and capacity. He provided the specific example of the White Mountain Apache Housing Authority (WMAHA), and how together with the Home Depot Foundation, HAC was able to award a $30,000 grant to WMAHA to help rehabilitate veteran houses on the Fort Apache Indian Reservation in eastern central Arizona. HAC would like to thank the National Congress of American Indians for allowing us to share what works and is looking forward to making more lasting partnerships in Tribal communities.

2025 National Rural Housing Conference

Last November, HAC hosted its biennial National Rural Housing Conference in Washington, DC. The conference brought together experts in housing, finance, nonprofit advocacy, and government, to engage in robust learning opportunities, meaningful networking, and discussions focused on strengthening rural housing nationwide. The conference plenaries addressed the issues faced by rural housing organizations, including a panel on the challenges of building affordable housing in rural America moderated by HAC Director of Research and Information Lance George, with panelists from the National Community Reinvestment Corporation and the National Association of Home Builders, as well as a, “Voices from The Hill” session that featured a speech from Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and videos from Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Rep. Zach Nunn (R-IA) highlighting housing’s role as a bipartisan unifier in America. We invite you to watch these plenary recordings on our YouTube channel, and to keep an eye out for information about the National Rural Housing Conference when it returns in 2027.

Recaps

–In February, HAC launched Heirs’ Property Central, a new online hub connecting researchers, advocates, and practitioners to trusted resources on heirs’ property issues. Made possible with support from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and JP Morgan Chase, Heirs’ Property Central brings together resources, research, and partner expertise to help communities, service providers, and professionals protect landowners’ agency and advance their housing goals. Read our reports, utilize our partners directory, check out our resources, and more at the Heirs’ Property Central website.

–In January, HAC published our 2026 Policy Priorities. Based around the five key pillars of improving housing supply, building capacity, expanding access to credit, preserving rural multifamily housing, and bolstering federal housing programs, the policy priorities expound on topics that span from heirs’ property, to rural homelessness, to high-needs rural regions in America, to disaster resiliency, and much more. Go in-depth with HAC’s 2026 Policy Priorities at the link above, or at our website at www.ruralhome.org.

–Rural America is home to a rapidly aging and increasingly disabled population—but many rural residents are navigating these challenges alone. In this piece entitled, “Expanding Service Coordination in Rural 515 Housing” HAC explores why service coordination is so critical in USDA Section 515 housing, and why it remains underused. Drawing on research, and HAC’s partnership with the AARP Foundation, the article demonstrates how service coordinators can help rural people stay housed while also strengthening operations. Read the full article to learn how this work is unfolding.

–HAC is hiring! Do you know someone who is passionate about serving the needs of rural communities in America? Perhaps that person is you? HAC is currently hiring in a number of different positions that advance the goals of affordable housing in rural America. Visit our Careers page, see what positions are available, and apply today!

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Rural Recap – Promoting Prosperity

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Rural communities need—and deserve—a coherent, national policy strategy that promotes prosperity. For such a strategy to move the needle, it must end the housing affordability crisis and build the capacity of rural communities to make the most of every opportunity.

Our homes are part of the foundation of thriving families and communities—they are pathways to realizing America’s full potential. With decent, healthy, and affordable homes, kids can succeed at school, seniors can age in place, and families can build wealth. Economics, health, education, and many more components of prosperous communities are all intimately tied to our homes.

The capital needed for a housing market to function is a lot like water: it flows down the path of least resistance, and it pools. For over 50 years—whether intentionally or not—public policy has channeled capital’s flow into sprawling metropolitan regions and allowed it to pool in suburbs and downtown commercial centers. This has deepened inequality and stifled opportunity in the communities that have been left out.

Building rural prosperity will happen one nail and one funding application at a time. Turning those into a national renaissance for rural America will take strategy. If we want investment to flow to a broader set of places and especially to the people and places which need it most, then we need public policy specifically designed to drive resources in their direction. To make the most of that capital, we must also build the capacity of those communities.

HAC builds the capacity of small towns and rural places to create thriving, prosperous communities. If you share our mission, please advocate on behalf of public funds for capacity building programs. We also hope you will consider making a gift to HAC to help us do more in rural America.

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Help Rural America Thrive on Giving Tuesday

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Good things are happening in rural America. Be a part of it.

Too often, the prevailing narrative about rural America is that it is failing compared to its urban and suburban counterparts. While rural America is certainly facing its share of struggles, there are so many bright spots and amazing things taking place in small towns and communities across the country. We know because we see it every day.

In October, HAC kicked off the Citizens Institute on Rural DesignTM (CIRD) with the CIRD Learning Cohort Summit in the towns of Thomas, Davis, and Elkins in rural West Virginia. The Citizen’s Institute on Rural Design™ is a National Endowment for the Arts leadership initiative in partnership with the Housing Assistance Council, along with buildingcommunityWORKSHOP. Participants representing 23 rural communities from across the country convened to learn the fundamentals of rural design and how it can help solve some of their community’s most challenging problems.

Giving Tuesday 2019

Over the next year, these 23 communities will receive access to the resources they need to convert their own good ideas into reality. Here a few examples of the challenges these communities will be tackling:

  • One of the pressing issues still facing the residents of Iola, Kansas is the lack of quality, affordable housing. Thrive Allen County and the City of Iola will use the design challenge to develop an affordable housing master plan for a neighborhood on the north side of town.
  • The town of Entiat, Washington is exploring how it can reinvent itself as a destination for recreation, agritourism, small business development, and residential development.
  • The Mt. Zion Baptist Church Preservation Society in Athens, Ohio plans to rehabilitate the Mt. Zion Baptist Church into a multi-use space devoted to the contributions of African Americans in Southeast Ohio – honoring its founding in 1905 by a community of free-born and formerly enslaved people of color.

2020 holds many possibilities for HAC and the communities we partner with, like Iola, Entiat, and Athens. This #GivingTuesday, your donation to HAC will have more impact as every dollar raised will meet HAC’s match for the CIRD program. And every donation made to HAC on Facebook on #GivingTuesday will be matched by Facebook. You can be a part of changing the story in rural America.

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Jennifer McAllister joins the Housing Assistance Council as Development Manager

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Contact: Dan Stern
202-842-8600
dan@ruralhome.org

Jennifer McCallisterJennifer McAllisterWashington, DC, May 15, 2019 – The Housing Assistance Council (HAC) is pleased to announce that Jennifer McAllister will join HAC as its first Development Manager. She .

Jennifer joins HAC with nearly 15 years of experience raising funds and creating lasting partnerships for national nonprofits. Most recently she led NeighborWorks America’s Resource Development Division, overseeing its daily operations and managing national partnerships. She also championed efforts to grow the fundraising capacity of the local community development organizations that make up the NeighborWorks network. Prior to that, Jennifer served as Director of Corporate Development at Manna, Inc., where she led all fundraising and communications efforts for the organization, including corporate and foundation partnership development, individual donor engagement and solicitation, and managed a revolving loan fund. Jennifer is a Pennsylvania native and received her undergraduate degree from Temple University.

“I am delighted that Jennifer will join the HAC team. She has a well-earned reputation among the funders and supporters of community development for her honest and thoughtful approach and dedication to mission,” said HAC CEO David Lipsetz.

About the Housing Assistance Council
The Housing Assistance Council helps build homes and communities across rural America. Founded in 1971 and headquartered in Washington, D.C., HAC is a national nonprofit and a certified community development financial institution dedicated to helping local rural organizations build affordable homes by providing below-market financing, technical assistance, training, research, and information services. To learn more, visit www.ruralhome.org.

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Webinar: An Introduction to Proposal Writing for Nonprofits

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Materials Posted

Power Point Presentation | Recording

Join the Housing Assistance Council on Thursday, July 13, 2017 for An Introduction to Proposal Writing for Nonprofits.

If you’re new to grant and proposal writing, or if you want a quick refresher, this webinar is for you! Join us as we break down the elements of a funding proposal and identify the features of strong, successful proposals.

Register Now.

Rural Placemaking Funding Available

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HAC, in collaboration with bcWORKSHOP, is excited to announce a call for participants for Rural Placemaking, a new creative placemaking initiative that will take place in two rural communities (with populations less than 50,000) in the United States. Creative placemaking is a way of working between community developers, housing organizations, artists and local stakeholders to strengthen communities.

Apply Online

Two partnerships between a housing or community development organization and an artist/art organization will be selected to implement a temporary initiative from May to August 2017. Applications are due Friday, March 10, 2017.

HAC Featured on Team Depot Facebook Page to Raise Funds for Rural Veterans

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The Housing Assistance Council (HAC) is honored to be one of nine organizations chosen as Service Ambassadors for Team Depot and The Home Depot Foundation’s “Celebration of Service.” This effort runs through November 11, 2015.

The Team Depot Facebook page has published HAC’s spotlight post.

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Likes, comments and shares of these spotlight posts will also equal $1 toward the $1 million goal. Mark your calendar for the HAC’s spotlight post will be published onMonday, September 21!

About HAC’s participation in the Celebration of Service

HAC will be working to raise funds for three grass-roots organizations in rural areas and partnering with Team Depot volunteers to improve housing conditions for aging and service-connected disabled veterans. These are veterans like Ben Mitchell, a cook in the Korean war. With HAC and Home Depot support Western Maine Community Action, one of the local partners, was able to complete an emergency replacement on his septic system to ensure his large family could remain in their home safely. Ben is featured in the Team Depot Spotlight post.

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50 Years for Rural America

Over 50 years HAC has worked in every U.S. state and the territories. Learn more about what our work means for rural communities.

Housing Assistance Council   |  1828 L Street. N.W., Suite 505, Washington, D.C. 20036
(202) 842-8600  |  (202) 347-3441  |  hac@ruralhome.org |

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