FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

October 11, 2006
CONTACT: Iris Skinner, Enterprise Community Partners, 410-715-7427, iskinner@enterprisecommunity.org

ENTERPRISE RECEIVES $750,000 FREDDIE MAC FOUNDATION GRANT TO BRIDGE AFFORDABLE HOUSING RESIDENTS WITH SOCIAL SERVICES
Washington, D.C. to Serve as Model Laboratory

Columbia, MD – A $750,000 Freddie Mac Foundation grant to strengthen families living in affordable rental housing through local partnerships was announced today. Led by Enterprise Community Partners, an affordable housing organization that works to fuel urban revitalization across the country, the resident services initiative will support five housing organizations in Washington, D.C., that help very low-income families navigate support services to achieve self-sufficiency.

"Affordable housing, together with access to training and better jobs, after-school programs to help children succeed in school and other social services, helps people move out of poverty into the mainstream of American life," said Enterprise Chairman, CEO and President Bart Harvey. "This unique partnership between Enterprise and the Freddie Mac Foundation will serve as a catalyst for communities to develop strategies that empower low-income families to achieve stability and economic success."

In communities across the country, approximately 5 million residents live in affordable rental housing. With the resident services model, an on-site coordinator assesses and links tenants to community service providers that offer quality child and youth programs such as after-school tutoring, increased school readiness and summer employment. In addition, adults are linked to programs on financial literacy, job-readiness and training. When appropriate services are not available or accessible, resident services are provided on-site such as computer access for all residents and after-school programs for youth.

Enterprise is using the metropolitan Washington, D.C., area as its principal laboratory to prove that effective resident services result in positive outcomes for children and families as well as property performance. The first funding partnership was established with Marshall Heights Community Development Organization, and four additional organizations will be identified in the coming months. These affordable housing organizations will receive technical assistance, training opportunities and peer-to-peer learning opportunities.

"The Freddie Mac Foundation invests in programs that stabilize and strengthen children and their families," said Maxine B. Baker, president and CEO, Freddie Mac Foundation. "That's why we are proud to be supporting Enterprise's innovative work, and even more excited that our city will be the first beneficiary. By bringing needed services directly to where families live, we know that more children and families will face a brighter future."

Enterprise plans to test and share these local innovations at a national resident services conference for community development leaders, practitioners, stakeholders, investors and policymakers in 2007. Moreover, a resident services training certificate program is being developed in partnership with NeighborWorks® America and the American Association of Service Coordinators. Over the next three years, an estimated 1,000 coordinators and managers will receive resident services training.

In 2003, Enterprise began a three-year pilot project funded by Freddie Mac to test approaches to resident services, measure results, develop best practices publications and inform practitioners. Outcomes from the pilot program provide much of the data for information tools and resources located on the Enterprise Web site (www.enterprisecommunity.org/resources). The National Resident Services Collaborative (www.residentservices.org) provides information on policy and research, outcome measurement, best practices and training. Enterprise, a founding member of the collaborative, provides staff support for the organization and manages the Web site.

ABOUT ENTERPRISE COMMUNITY PARTNERS is a leading provider of the development capital and expertise it takes to create decent, affordable homes and rebuild communities. For more than two decades, Enterprise has pioneered neighborhood solutions through public-private partnerships with financial institutions, governments, community organizations and others that share our vision. Enterprise has raised and invested $7 billion in equity, grants and loans and is currently investing in communities at a rate of $1 billion a year. Visit www.enterprisecommunity.org to learn more about Enterprise's efforts to build communities and opportunity, and to meet some of the half a million people we have helped.

ABOUT THE FREDDIE MAC FOUNDATION: Created by Freddie Mac in 1991, the Freddie Mac Foundation is dedicated to creating hope and opportunity for children and their families. As the largest corporate funder in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area, Freddie Mac and the Freddie Mac Foundation have invested nearly $280 million in organizations serving the community.