Every community-based affordable housing organization eventually faces the same question: How do you help more families when the need keeps growing but your capacity doesn’t?

Affordable housing and “dream homes” aren’t often part of the same conversation. But at come dream, come build (cdcb) in Brownsville, Texas, they’re one and the same. cdbc’s award-winning program, DreamBuild, creates volumetric modular grow homes – houses that are built in a factory, installed on-site and can easily be expanded as residents’ needs and finances shift. It's the type of regional solution that the NeighborWorks network is known for.

The cost of housing in the U.S. has been climbing and for many families, it’s harder than ever to keep up. Between rising property values, stricter lending conditions and limited access to upfront capital, the path to homeownership can feel nearly impossible, especially for first-time buyers without financial support.  

NeighborWorks® America has welcomed 14 new Business Intelligence fellows, representing 10 organizations from the Southern and Northeastern Regions in the NeighborWorks network. All of the fellows are receiving training on using Tableau software for data analytics and visualization, and will focus on property inheritance issues, which has been identified as major challenge in communities served by network organizations and a major obstacle to building generational wealth. 

The fellows program this year is being sponsored by TD Bank.

When people tell the story of America, they often talk about national leaders, historical events and major milestones. 

But America's story has always been written closer to home. 

After years of conversations and planning, the Fort Hall Housing Authority, the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes and NeighborWorks Pocatello recently developed a down payment assistance program that expands access to homeownership both on and off Tribal land. The Tribal Council approved the agreement this month, marking an important milestone in a partnership built on trust, collaboration and a shared commitment to addressing housing needs. 

National Homeownership Month is a time to focus on the path to the place you call home and on the resources to get there. The month might be wrapping up, but for many, the journey to homeownership is just beginning.

For more than 20 years, Marie Shelton rented the same three-bedroom house in Charleston, West Virginia. Today, she owns it.

“I raised my kids in this house. Grandkids too,” she said. It’s just blocks from her office at the West Virginia Department of Transportation, with a big backyard and multiple fireplaces that she decorates for Christmas and in the fall.

Shelton’s path to homeownership started with an ultimatum: Her landlord had decided to sell the place that she called home. If she didn’t buy it, the landlord said, she would have to move. 

There is strength in NeighborWorks® America’s network of nearly 250 nonprofits from across the country. Jim Peffley, CEO of NeighborWorks Capital, a community development financial institution (CDFI) created to serve NeighborWorks network organizations, wants to harness that strength to collectively raise capital at scale – and with better terms. The ultimate goal is to bring attractive capital to communities that often do not have access to capital with the best terms.

The sun shone brightly over the playground near Betsy Ross Circle in Milford, Delaware.