*Amend contract with African American Alliance for Homeownership for the Homeowner Asset Preservation Program to increase amount by $21,000 (amend Contract 32002786)
The City of Portland ordains:
Section 1. The Council finds:
- The Portland Housing Bureau (PHB) strategic goals prioritize homeownership retention for low-to-moderate income families.
- PHB and African American Alliance for Homeownership (AAAH) entered into a subrecipient agreement for the Homeowner Asset Preservation Program (HAPP) on July 1, 2022.
- AAAH in partnership with The Commons Law Center, provide legal services focused on estate planning and addressing immediate threats to homeownership preservation to households with income up to 80% Area Median Income (AMI), which is currently $106,500, for a family of four.
- Homeowner retention and legal services aimed at preventing loss of housing wealth in communities experiencing displacement of long-time homeowners will be provided to a minimum of 25 households at or below 80% AMI within the jurisdiction of the City of Portland, OR. Services are targeted to seniors (age 55+) who have owned their home for 20+ years.
- The FY22-23 budget for subrecipient contract #32002786 will be amended from $99,000, to $120,000in Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funding.
NOW, THEREFORE, the Council directs:
- The PHB Interim Director is hereby authorized to execute the First Amendment of Subrecipient contract #32002786, for the HAPP, substantially in accordance with the agreement attached as “Exhibit A.”
- The PHB Interim Director is hereby authorized to further amend the Contract when applicable and value is not increased by more than 25% of original contract amount.
Section 2. The Council declares that an emergency exists in order to continue the implementation of housing and emergency services to assist households experiencing homelessness; therefore, this Ordinance shall be in full force and effect from and after its passage by the Council.
Official Record (Efiles)
An ordinance when passed by the Council shall be signed by the Auditor. It shall be carefully filed and preserved in the custody of the Auditor (City Charter Chapter 2 Article 1 Section 2-122)
Passed by Council
Auditor of the City of Portland
Simone Rede
Impact Statement
Purpose of Proposed Legislation and Background Information
The Portland Housing Bureau partners with African American Alliance to provide free legal estate planning services to Portland homeowners at or below 80% AMI as a part of its homeownership retention strategy.
- $99,000 in Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funding was initially allocated in FY 2022-23
- Due to legal costs associated with facilitating the program, an additional $21,000 in contract funding is needed to reach FY 2022-23 goals
Financial and Budgetary Impacts
- Funding for the additional $21,000, is already a part of PHB’s approved FY 2022-23 budget and will be disbursed over the remaining contract period ending June 2023.
Community Impacts and Community Involvement
- During the development of the N/NE Neighborhood Housing Strategy in 2015-16, community engagement uncovered issues such as intergenerational property transfers and complicated real estate titles affecting longtime low-to-moderate income homeowners in N/NE Portland.
- Through advocacy from the N/NE Housing Oversight Committee additional community engagement was completed by PHB in Spring 2019 and informed the creation of the Pilot Program which ended December 31, 2021.
- Funding will support low-to-moderate income homeowners in the City of Portland by providing home retention services and legal services to address homeownership issues such as estate planning, tangled title/legal ownership issues, or predatory mortgage servicing to promote asset preservation and intergenerational wealth-building.
100% Renewable Goal
Approval of this subrecipient contract amendment does not impact the City’s total or renewable energy use.