NAHC advocates for co-op housing nationally
he National Association
of Housing Cooperatives
(NAHC) helps low and moderate income families
govern, operate and
preserve affordable cooperative housing
communities for themselves and
future residents. Over 1.2 million
families in 44 states benefit from
cooperative homeownership.
NAHC is the national advocate
for affordable housing development
and preservation through the cooperative
form of ownership. It provides
extensive training to boards of
directors of housing cooperatives to
make them more effective in managing
their communities and providing
service to residents. NAHC
also trains on-site management personnel,
who represent the first contact
in providing service and attracting
new residents.
NAHC works with other nonprofit
groups in sponsoring the creation
of new cooperatives for lowand
moderate-income families and
senior citizens.
In rural areas, housing cooperatives
can be financed with the USDA Rural
Development’s Section 515 program or
the U.S. Department of Housing and
Urban Development’s Section 213
program. Manufactured-home parks
can be developed as cooperatives under
HUD’s Section 207 mortgage insurance
program.
In 2003, NAHC successfully persuaded
Congress to increase the HUD
mortgage limit for manufactured home
co-op parks from $9,000 to $17,000.
President Bush signed the increase
into law in December 2003.
Many NAHC member cooperatives
are coming to the end of their original
HUD-insured mortgages. NAHC is
creating new educational workshops
and publications to help cooperatives
through that transition, addressing refinancing
and rehabilitation needs,
adopting policies to replace HUD regulations,
and deciding whether to
retain sales price or income restrictions.
The aging of cooperative
leadership creates serious governance
challenges, and bad governance
is one of the three biggest
threats to co-op survival. NAHC
recently adopted a code of ethics
for co-op board members and
appointed a committee to develop
a series of workshops on
excellence in governance.
NAHC is a member agency in
the Combined Federal
Campaign through the Human
and Civil Rights Charities of
America. NAHC is also an eligible
recipient in the United Coop
Appeal workplace giving campaign
and the United Way of the
National Capital Area.
Contact Information: website:
www.coophousing.org;
phone: (202) 737-0797; address:
1707 H St., NW, Suite 201,
Washington, D.C. 20006. President:
Bill Magee, Noble Square
Cooperative, Chicago, Ill.; Board
Chairman: Barbara Meskunas, San
Francisco, Calif. Executive Director:
Douglas Kleine.
