FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 2/5/2016

Contact:

Amelia Laing

Content Manager

alaing@mercyhousing.org

303-830-3432

Moscow, Idaho— Mercy Loan Fund (MLF), a leading Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI), announced that it has partnered with its parent organization, Mercy Housing, Inc. (MHI), one of the nation’s largest developers of and managers of affordable housing, to preserve 55 affordable homes at Hawthorne Village Apartments. The affordable community is located in Moscow, Idaho and serves people in the area who make 50 to 80 percent of area median income (AMI).

MLF will provide MHI with a $450,000 loan to complete necessary rehabilitation work to the property, including sidewalk repair, countertop and cabinet replacement, bathtub replacement, painting, and other improvements. MHI has owned the property for nearly 20 years and these renovations will enable them to continue providing quality housing to people with low incomes.

“We are thrilled to be able to make these needed improvements to Hawthorne Village Apartments,” said Kassidi Boening, Director of Transactions of MHI. “Thanks to Mercy Loan Fund, these much needed affordable rural homes will receive important upgrades.”

“At a time when affordable rural housing stock is becoming increasingly scarce, it is essential that we preserve affordable homes such as those at Hawthorne Village Apartments,” said Jason Battista, President of MLF.

Battista’s comment highlights a troubling trend in rural housing. Nearly half of rural renters are cost burdened and pay more than 30 percent of their income on housing, according to the Housing Assistance Council. And more than half of those renters pay more than 50 percent of their monthly incomes on housing.

The national affordable housing crisis deeply affects rural communities; according to the National Rural Housing Coalition, people living in rural areas have higher poverty rates than those living in urban areas, have limited access to affordable mortgage credit, and are more often forced to settle for poor quality housing.

About Mercy Loan Fund

For three decades, Mercy Loan Fund has focused exclusively on funding affordable housing and essential community infrastructure projects that support affordable housing. By collaborating with socially-responsible developers, Mercy Loan Fund has helped finance the development of single and multifamily homes for rental and homeownership. These developments help a variety of people including low-income families, the working poor, seniors, farm works, people who have experienced homelessness, and people with special needs. Mercy Loan Fund is a subsidiary of the affordable housing nonprofit, Mercy Housing. For more information, please visit www.mercyloanfund.org.

About Mercy Housing, Inc.

Mercy Housing, Inc. is one of the nation’s largest nonprofit developers and managers of affordable housing. Operating in 41 states, the organization serves families, seniors, veterans, and people with special needs. Mercy Housing not only helps provide quality, affordable housing programs to those in need, but also offers Resident Services that help improve the community one resident at a time. To learn more about Mercy Housing, please visit www.mercyhousing.org.