Feature Story

November 2, 2007

National Rural Housing Group Supports South Arkansas Community Development

Housing Assistance Council:

The Housing Assistance Council is proud to be counted among the many supporters of South Arkansas Community Development as SACD breaks ground on Monday for its new Somersett Subdivision.

HAC, which works to improve housing conditions for lower-income residents of rural communities throughout the United States, has worked with SACD since 2000.

"It is an honor to be part of SACD's work to provide quality, affordable homes throughout southwest Arkansas," said Housing Assistance Council board member Peggy Wright.

Director of the Delta Studies Center at Arkansas State University, Wright has served on HAC's board for more than 20 years and will represent the organization at Monday's groundbreaking ceremony.

HAC has made several low-interest loans to SACD totaling approximately $1.38 million, Wright explained, including $728,000 to help acquire the land for Somersett.

SACD has focused on working with first-time low-income homebuyers who use "self-help" techniques, working for hundreds of hours to help construct their own homes.

When SACD meets its loan requirements, including completing a certain number of homes, as much as 80 percent of each loan converts to a grant.

"The Housing Assistance Council focuses special attention on the Mississippi Delta region because of its high levels of poverty and housing problems," Wright explained, "and SACD is making real headway in its part of the state."

HAC's assistance to SACD is funded by grants and contracts from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, as well as private funders.

A national nonprofit corporation headquartered in Washington, D.C., and founded in 1971, HAC helps local organizations build affordable homes in rural America by providing below-market financing, technical assistance, research, training, and information services.