“This is a great day for the residents of Austin,” said Juanita Rutues as she welcomed neighborhood leaders and representatives of CitiFinancial and NTIC to the South Austin Coalition Community Council (SACCC) offices in Chicago. SACCC, CitiFinancial and NTIC gathered on May 17 to celebrate CitiFinancial’s recent contribution of $250,000 to NTIC to further the financial education programs that have already been implemented in several cities with NTIC affiliate groups. SACCC received $20,000 of that grant to grow and continue their homeownership preservation program.

Nine groups have renewed an agreement for the partnership between CitiFinancial and NTIC.

“Our efforts are working,” continued Rutues. “Foreclosures are down in the Austin community only because of what we’ve been doing and continue to do. With the help today of CitiFinancial, we can continue to educate residents about how to become successful homeowners and how to protect themselves against predatory loans.”

Mary Louise Preis, Vice President of Community Relations

“Three years ago CitiFinancial and NTIC formed a partnership to explore ways to promote home ownership and home preservation,” said Mary Louise Preis of CitiFinancial. “Building year by year we have learned together what is needed most in the communities we both serve.”

The partnership, which began with seven NTIC affiliate groups, has recently been expanded to nine groups and renewed for two more years. Representatives from each group met in Chicago in June to sign the renewal agreement.

The groups involved in this agreement are: Pittsburgh Community Reinvestment Group, Central Illinois Organizing Project, South Austin Coalition Community Council, Communities United for Action, East Side Organizing Project, Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement, Northwest Side Housing Center, Organization for Neighborhood Empowerment and Syracuse United Neighbors.