MassMutual Foundation funds expansion of Way Finders City of Homes homeownership initiative in Springfield with $2M award

Springfield, MA- Way Finders is pleased to announce that the MassMutual Foundation has awarded $2,000,000 to support the expansion of its innovative City of Homes homeownership program, which takes vacant or abandoned residential properties in Springfield, renovates them, and offers them to first time homebuyers for an affordable price. Way Finders will use this support to purchase the properties for rehab or redevelopment. The MassMutual Foundation originally awarded $2,000,000 two years ago to help launch the City of Homes program (press release).

“We are thrilled that MassMutual Foundation is supporting the expansion of this initiative,” says Keith Fairey, President and CEO of Way Finders. “When we take long-neglected properties, renovate them, and offer them at affordable prices, we accomplish three important goals. We bring housing back onto the tax rolls. We improve property values in Springfield neighborhoods. And we help local families build the kind of generational wealth through homeownership that many have been excluded from.” Way Finders expects to develop up to 10 additional homes through this grant.

“At the MassMutual Foundation’, we believe great things can happen when we come together as a community,” said Dennis Duquette, President & CEO of the MassMutual Foundation. “What we see happening with Way Finders and their City of Homes program is emblematic of that: not only are they helping families take a massive leap towards building generational wealth, but through their collaboration with us and the City of Springfield, they are also strengthening the community around us. We are proud to support the work being done by the City of Homes program and are looking forward to watching its continued progress.”

The City of Homes Initiative is also testing a new concept for getting properties into the hands of nonprofit developers – Special Attorney Receivership, or SAR.

SAR is an offshoot of a traditional receivership, the process where a city seizes distressed property to enforce the sanitary code. Typically, seized properties sit empty for months or years and may eventually be sold at auction to the highest bidder. With SAR, the court system offers the property to a qualified nonprofit developer, giving it the ability to renovate the homes and keep sale prices affordable for first-time homebuyers.

“Through this program, we hope to show that SAR is a process that can and should be adopted by other cities in the Commonwealth,” says Fairey. “Too often, seized properties are boarded up and forgotten, becoming more dilapidated and less feasible to renovate. SAR may prove to be a faster way to get these properties back on the tax rolls and into the hands of nonprofit developers and ultimately, local homeowners.”