Manchester, NH – St. Mary’s Bank today announced a gift of $1,500 to Neighborhood Housing Services of Greater Nashua (NHSGN), which will allow the non-profit HUD-certified housing counseling agency to purchase 100 books titled “Realizing the American Dream” for use in its first-time homebuyer course.
“Buying a house, especially for the first time, is a wonderful accomplishment that brings with it a great responsibility,” said Tom Champagne, St. Mary's Bank Director of Community Outreach. “We’re pleased to help an organization that gives people the tools and education they need to make informed decisions about their future homes. It’s important for prospective homebuyers to understand everything they need to know about the mortgage and lending process, and we commend NHSGN on their endeavors to help families find the program that fits their needs best.”
Founded in 1988, Neighborhood Housing Services assists low- and moderate-income families achieve homeownership through affordable housing by giving people the tools they need to become involved in the solution to their housing needs. As part of NHSGN’s homebuyer education program, course topics include Understanding Credit; Working with Real Estate, Insurance, and Closing Agents; Mortgage Options; Home Inspections; Home Repairs; Maintenance and Insurance and Household budgets. Distributed by NeighborWorks America, “Realizing the American Dream” gives a comprehensive analysis of how, why and when individuals should look at buying a house.
“St. Mary’s generously donated $1,500 to our program in 2008 so we could buy 100 copies of ‘Realizing the American Dream’, and we’re so grateful they’ve gifted us with the same amount again this year so we can continue to stock our supply with this invaluable book,” said John Enman, Director of Homeownership for NHSGN. “Because our accredited course is often required by many banks and government grant programs, it’s become popular among first-time homebuyers looking to educate themselves on the ins and outs of purchasing a house. We’re pleased to be able to help them through that learning process—and in fact, there is a very low mortgage default rate among our seminar graduates.”
For more information on Neighborhood Housing Services and its educational classes and programs, call 603-882-2077.
Left to Right, John Enman, Director of Homeownership, NHSGN, Larry George, Mortgage Loan Officer, St. Mary's Bank, Bridget Belton-Jette, Executive Director, NHSGN and Tom Champagne, Director of Community Outreach, St. Mary's Bank.