Resources for Stabilizing Communities

Communities across the country are facing the challenge of dealing with the destabilizing impacts of foreclosed properties. The following resources provide information and strategies for communities working to preserve and revitalize their neighborhoods. Specific resources are also available for consumers; Systemwide information is available from the 12 Reserve Bank Foreclosure Resource Centers.

• effectively utilizing and leveraging national resources to address abandonment
• navigating ownership and control of vacant property
• pricing and valuation of vacant properties
• models of vacant property disposition

StableCommunities.org
Part of the Federal Reserve's response to the foreclosure crisis is an initiative with NeighborWorks America® to address the effects of foreclosures on communities. NeighborWorks® created this website to provide nonprofit groups and their partners with information and strategies to stabilize and revitalize communities.

How to Spend $3.92 Billion: Stabilizing Neighborhoods by Addressing Foreclosed/Abandoned Properties (325KB PDF)
The Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 created the Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP), which provides $3.92 billion to help stabilize towns, cities, and neighborhoods affected by subprime lending and foreclosures. This discussion paper from the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia outlines 11 key principles for communities to consider as they plan for and use NSP funds.

Community Response to the Foreclosure Crisis: Thoughts on Local Interventions (181KB PDF)
This discussion paper from the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta describes a range of local responses to surging foreclosures. Local governments, nonprofits, and community groups can consult this survey of potential and actual near-term strategies as they plan and implement their own responses.

The Accumulation of Foreclosed Properties: Trajectories of Metropolitan REO Inventories during the 2007–2008 Mortgage Crisis (1.5MB PDF)
This discussion paper from the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta provides a first look at how lender-owned homes, often called real-estate-owned or “REO” properties, have accumulated across metropolitan areas since the advent of the 2007-2008 mortgage crisis. Understanding the accumulation, aging, and nature of REO inventories in different local housing markets can inform policies and practices regarding how to help communities and neighborhoods recover from surging foreclosures.

Understanding Ohio’s Land Bank Legislation (106KB PDF)
In response to the effects of sustained high rates of foreclosure, policymakers in Ohio are considering the land bank model as a way to help address the problem of vacant and abandoned properties in cities like Cleveland. This discussion paper from the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland seeks to inform those discussions by explaining the state's current land banking system and by illustrating how the system that has been proposed in legislation might work.