Affordable Housing Development & Rehabilitation
Neighborhood Restore was formed in 1999 to administer the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development’s (HPD) Third Party Transfer Program (“TPT Program”). Through the TPT Program, Neighborhood Restore develops and ensures the maintenance of safe and affordable housing in New York City by overseeing the stabilization, management, and rehabilitation planning of distressed tax foreclosed properties. Prior to the creation of the TPT Program, the City of New York would take possession of tax delinquent properties, resulting in lengthy ownership periods, costly expenses to manage and repair the properties, and lost tax revenues. Neighborhood Restore has supported the creation and preservation of affordable housing in New York City through the TPT Program by transitioning multifamily buildings back into active use and increasing the quantity and quality of rental housing.
In 2005, Neighborhood Restore expanded its efforts to address the looming foreclosure crisis with affordable homeownership programs through the formation of Restored Homes Housing Development Fund Corporation (“Restored Homes”). Since its creation, Restored Homes has administered two foreclosure response programs, the Asset Control Area (“ACA”) and Real Estate Owned (“REO”) Programs, through which over 160 homes were acquired, rehabilitated, and sold to qualified low- and moderate- income homeowners. Currently, Restored Homes is working with the New York City Housing Authority (“NYCHA”) and HPD to acquire and rehabilitate a portfolio of vacant single family foreclosed homes through the Small Homes Rehab – NYCHA Program. Restored Homes will oversee the rehabilitation and sale of the homes at affordable levels. Through the Open Door Program (previously called New Infill Homeownership Opportunities Program) and as part of Mayor de Blasio’s Housing New York Plan, Restored Homes will collaborate with HPD and developers by taking title to City-owned infill sites during rehabilitation and oversee the transfer to qualified low- and moderate- income homebuyers.
In 2011, Preserving City Neighborhoods Housing Development Fund Corporation (“PCN”) was incorporated to act as a vehicle for the City to acquire distressed or at-risk mortgage notes for the purpose of repositioning and preserving this affordable housing resource throughout the City. Through the Community Restoration Fund (“CRF”), a dynamic partnership between HPD and nonprofit organizations, including specialty mortgage servicers, housing counselors, and asset and property managers, PCN acquires distressed mortgage notes in targeted areas of the City and maintains control to achieve optimal outcomes for the properties and homeowners while implementing cohesive neighborhood strategies to mitigate destabilization and blight.
In 2012, Neighborhood Restore further broadened the scope of its affordable housing development work with the creation of Restoring Communities Housing Development Fund Corporation (“Restoring Communities”) which was formed to act as the interim owner of a pipeline of City-owned properties that were formerly managed by tenants under HPD’s Tenant Interim Lease (“TIL”) Program now known as the Affordable Neighborhood Cooperative Program (“ANCP”). Restoring Communities collaborates with HPD and qualified sponsor-developers by taking title to these properties during rehabilitation and overseeing their transition to newly formed low-income cooperatives.
In 2018, Neighborhood Renewal Housing Development Fund Corporation (“Neighborhood Renewal”) was incorporated to create permanent housing for formerly homeless families through its participation in the Cluster Housing Conversion Program, a joint effort by the Department of Homeless Services and HPD that transitions emergency homeless shelters into permanently-affordable rent regulated housing.. Upon acquisition, Neighborhood Renewal works closely with its nonprofit partners in overseeing the occupancy, stabilization, management and rehabilitation planning of the properties to ensure that they are preserved as safe and affordable housing into the future.
Technical Services & Construction Management
As part of its mission to ensure the development and preservation of safe and affordable housing in New York City, Neighborhood Restore supports the efforts of its partners by applying its expertise in construction management and housing development. Its affiliate entity, Restored Homes, provides a variety of services to and on behalf of nonprofit partners, low-and moderate-income homeowners and HPD. As part of these efforts, Restored Homes supports affordable housing developers by securing grant funding for projects through the New York State Affordable Housing Corporation as well as by monitoring the quality and timeliness of the construction and subsequent marketing of these projects to eligible homebuyers.
Hurricane Sandy Recovery
Restored Homes has actively supported Hurricane Sandy housing recovery efforts through partnering with Neighborhood Revitalization NYC (“NRNYC”) and Local Initiatives Support Corporation (“LISC”) to conduct needs assessments, prepare scopes of work, oversee rehabilitation and sign off on completed work in single family homes and multifamily buildings impacted by Hurricane Sandy. The $19 million philanthropically-funded NRNYC Home Repair Program completed repair work in 501 damaged homes with low-income homeowners. Additionally, Restored Homes acts as a qualified plan and cost analyst and construction monitor on the Build it Back Multifamily Loan Program — a CDBG-DR funded rehabilitation program assisting multifamily buildings that suffered damage from Hurricane Sandy. In 2013, Project Rebuild, Inc. (“Project Rebuild”) was established to support the Build it Back Acquisition, Relocation and Buyout Program, an effort by New York City to purchase homes substantially damaged by Hurricane Sandy with the goal of assembling parcels for resilient redevelopment or, in some cases, remain as vacant land in the future. Project Rebuild coordinates the acquisition and subsequent demolition or rehabilitation as well as secures, maintains and resells the properties with oversight by HPD.
Advocacy & Policy
Pursuant to its mission, Neighborhood Restore and its affiliates actively engage in policy discussions and advocacy coalitions. It is a member of United for Housing (previously known as Housing First!) — a coalition of community, business, labor, civic, and religious organizations dedicated to addressing the chronic lack of affordable and supportive housing in New York City. The Executive Director serves as an advisory board member of the New York Housing Conference — a broad-based coalition that advocates for decent affordable housing for all New Yorkers. Restored Homes is a member of the New York Mortgage Coalition (“NYMC”) — a unique collaboration of financial institutions and 9 community housing counseling agencies dedicated to helping low- and moderate- income households become first-time homebuyers in the New York City metro area. As part of the Coalition for Affordable Homes — a partnership of 30 non-profits, community associations, local development corporations, and legal service providers — Restored Homes advocates for initiatives to support middle- and working-class homeowners throughout New York City.