NeighborWorks® America welcomed leaders from across its nearly 250-member network to Washington, D.C., last week, for its annual Executive Symposium. The gathering gave leaders – and, for the first time in person, board members – a chance to connect, to innovate, and to talk about solutions for the nation’s housing crisis.

This year, about 220 network leaders and 120 board members joined in the event. The theme was Collective Leadership: Building Strength for Today & Tomorrow!

Any time of year that staff at Housing Partnership of New Jersey can get a client into a new home is the best time of year, says Stephanie Otaegui, program director for the housing counseling department. And during a season when people talk about hope is a good time to talk about their work.

National Homeownership Month celebrates the importance of homeownership in the United States. NeighborWorks America, along with the NeighborWorks network, celebrates homeownership year round  and centers housing counseling as a way to help people decide if homeownership is right for them and, if it is, to help them down that path. 

NeighborWorks America President & CEO Marietta Rodriguez joined the Women in Housing & Finance organization for a Public Policy Lunch this week, the first week of Women’s History Month. 

The Housing Stability Counseling Program (HSCP), funded by Congress as part of the American Rescue Plan and administered through NeighborWorks America, helped almost 93,000 Americans facing housing instability. NeighborWorks talked with two counselors whose organizations participated in the program. They told us how the program worked for their clients, what challenges remain ahead and how their own housing experiences guide their work.