Isles, Inc. 

May News from Isles

May at Isles
A Home of Her Own
Miles for Isles
Young Philanthropists
Community Event Calendar

Board of Trustees

Steven Goodell

Ann Marie Senior

Liz Erickson

Manish Shah

Edward Butler

Tom Byrne

Zane Dion Clark

Barbara Coe

Michael Dundas

Robert Harris

Karen Hernandez

Jacque Howard

Sa Mut Scott

Francis Blanco

Stuart Essig

Michele Minter

Oye Olukotun

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Greetings!

 

In this issue, we introduce you to Felicia, who will buy her first home this month. Her new place is a formerly vacant, now beautifully restored, affordable and energy efficient 120 year-old home on Stockton Street in Trenton. And she's excited.

 

But didn't we just learn from the recession that homeownership can hurt working families?

 

The answer to that is yes. But if we are smart, this can be a great time to buy a home. If we provide quality homes that cost little to operate in places that are stable, with good low cost mortgages to prepared buyers, then the benefits of homeownership become clear - for buyers and the entire community.

 

Isles' goal is self-reliance, and homeownership can offer both stability and 'forced savings', both key to building self-sufficiency. To be successful, new homeowners benefit from housing and budget counseling and workshops. Since 2003, Isles has counseled and trained more than 1,500 prospective home buyers.

 

Homeowners create more stakeholders in a community, if the conditions are right. The magic is in knowing those conditions. Having 32 years of experience really helps.

 

Enjoy the newsletter, and let us know what you think.

  

In Community,

 signatureMJ
Marty Johnson

A Home of Her Own

  

 

In December 2012, Isles held a quarterly First Time Home Buyer workshop. Ms. Felicia Wimbush was one of several potential homeowners attending the event. While she came to the workshop eager to learn about the possibilities, she did not expect that the information she gathered would change her life.

  

Felicia was so enthused at the end of the session, that she called Isles' Asset Building coordinator, Ankit Patel, the following business day to see what she needed to do to begin the home buying process. After discussing her credit, they concluded she may be able to own a home in 6 months and referred her to our counseling staff. She had just taken the first step on the road to owning a home, but there were a few more things to do before she could reach that goal.

 

First, Felicia was interested in purchasing an affordable housing unit rehabbed by Isles, but she needed to fall within the income guidelines for the unit and she needed enough for a down payment. At this point, Isles referred her to another agency to fulfill a 6-8 hour, one-on-one homeownership counseling requirement. After receiving her certificate of completion, she insisted that Isles support her through the rest of the process. Next, Isles coached her in submitting the appropriate application to qualify her monthly income. Her last concern was addressed when Isles' staff assisted Felicia in applying for HOPE VI down payment assistance, available in the city of Trenton for first time buyers. In order to qualify for the funding, she needed $1,000 of her own money as part of the down payment. She wasted no time gathering her resources to meet that requirement. As result, she qualified for an additional $8,800 of down payment assistance.

 

Ms. Wimbush will be closing on her new house early in June 2013 - exactly six months after attending the Isles First Time Home Buyer workshop.  

 

 

 

2nd Miles for Isles 5K - the results are in... 
  
...it was a great success!  Participation in the event more than doubled over 2012 as well as the funds raised for Isles!  Many thanks to our event sponsors, participating sponsors, walkers, and runners for joining us to foster self-reliance and healthy, sustainable communities.     
Team Integra 

Pictured above are some of the 25 members of the Integra LifeSciences team with Isles' Trustee, Stuart Essig, and Isles' CEO Marty Johnson.  
  


 

Isles Receives Funding from Young Philanthropists!

 

Join the students of Mercer Elementary School in supporting Isles!

  

Isles' Community Calendar

 

Visit Isles' website to view our calendar of community events.  Join us for a First Time Home Buyer workshop, gardening support workshops, or the Plate & Place film series!

Self-Reliant Communities 

Isles' Calendar

  
  
Isles, Inc.
10 Wood Street
Trenton, New Jersey 08618
609-341-4700