BEST Partners with United Way and GECAC’s Family Savings Program

A ground breaking on Thursday, July 7 celebrated a partnership between United Way’s Empowering Neighborhoods Impact Council, GECAC, a United Way member agency and BEST’s Homeownership Program.

The new homeowner is Ms. Jean Walsh, a commercial underwriting assistant at Erie Insurance. Her homeownership is a result of the FSA (Family Savings Account) program, which United Way funds through GECAC. United Way matches dollar for dollar savings for homeownership in select Erie neighborhoods.

United Way believes that homeownership creates strong neighborhoods. "July is national homeownership month and this effort helps make owning a home a reality for another Erie resident,” says Alan Perez, president and chief professional officer at United Way. The FSA program allows savers, under specific guidelines, to have their dollars matched one to one by government funding sources. In addition, United Way’s funding provides an additional dollar for dollar match for homeowners in select neighborhoods.

Participants in the FSA program must be first time homebuyers earning low to moderate income to qualify for the down payment assistance. In addition, the savers must attend homeownership training classes where skills to run a successful household and manage the major responsibilities of owning their first home are taught.

Some graduates of the FSA program will partner with the Bayfront East Side Taskforce (BEST) and Port Harbor Homes Construction Company to make the dream of a house a reality. Seven BEST homes are currently planned for 2005 and 2006.

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