Family Stability Initiative

Program Description

The Family Stability Initiative is a program designed to assist qualified families with school-age children who own their homes and are at risk of losing their homes to foreclosure. The goal of the initiative is to enable families to maintain housing stability, to keep children stable in school.

Program Services

The Family Stability Initiative provides comprehensive services to families which include:

• Case Management
• Housing Counseling
• Financial Education and Coaching
  

Case Management

Case Management Specialists will work with families to:

• Determine eligibility
• Identify and remove issues that led them to mortgage payment delinquency
• Assist families in developing a plan for removing barriers that jeopardize their housing stability
• Refer and/or connect families to benefits and resources that may assist them in maintaining their housing stability

The Case Management Specialist will also work with families to obtain alternative housing if continued home ownership is not a viable option.

Housing Counseling

Housing Counselors will assist families in mortgage delinquency or foreclosure by providing housing and financial counseling. If needed, counselors will contact banks, mortgage or servicing companies to attempt to work out an affordable loan resolution to help the family stay in their home. Counselors also provide financial coaching and workshops to move families toward housing stability.

Financial Education Workshops

Attendance at Financial Education Workshops will provide families with general information related to:

• Understanding and developing a spending plan
• Debt management
• Financial literacy
• Understanding and reviewing credit reports
• Understanding and improving credit scores
• Developing long- and short-term financial goals Attendance at Financial Education Workshops is a requirement of program participation.
  

Requirements for Program Participation

• Willingness to provide personal and financial information to the Case Management Specialist and Housing Counselor related to the cause of the current housing crisis and barriers to maintaining housing stability.
• Willingness to work with the Case Management Specialist over an extended period of time to resolve identified barriers to main-taining housing stability.
• Willingness to work with the Housing Counselor and Case Management Specialist to develop and implement a housing stability plan.
• Participation in Financial Education Workshops and Financial Coaching sessions.
• Willingness to provide follow-up data on the status of the family’s situation for up to one year after program assistance is provided.
  

The Family Stability Initiative is administered through Community Housing Solutions (CHS). CHS is a HUD-approved housing counseling agency that has been providing foreclosure prevention and financial education and counseling for 35 years.

Contact Information

The Family Stability Initiative is located at 2775 S. Moreland, Cleveland, Ohio 44120.

Phone number: (216) 921-9100
Fax: (216) 921-8950 

Email address: fsi@commhousingsolutions.org

If you are interested in participating in the Family Stability Initiative please contact the Initiative for assistance in determining if your family meets the eligibility requirements.

FUNDING PARTNERSHIP ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

The Family Stability Initiative is funded in partnership with the Siemer Family Foundation – a fund of the Columbus Foundation, the Cleveland Foundation and United Way of Greater Cleveland.