Highlighting the Positive

It’s really easy to get sucked into all the doom and gloom. Working remotely out of my home office outside of Boise, Idaho, I see it locally with layoffs, business and restaurant closures, even a ski resort that just closed its slopes. And you can’t turn on the TV or look at the Yahoo homepage without seeing the daily bad news on the economy. It’s hard to get away from the negatives.

The March issue of AFFORDABLE HOUSING FINANCE, which has just been posted online this week, features a special how-to report with tips and strategies from industry leaders on surviving today’s environment. We’re hoping the industry lessons included in our special report will help you with your business. We’ve also included two online exclusives as part of this special how-to guide on the ins and outs of swaps and the opportunities in public housing .

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Another piece of good news in the past couple of weeks is President Barack Obama’s 2010 budget proposal, with the Department of Housing and Urban Development getting a $7 billion boost. The proposal calls for $1 billion to fund the new National Housing Trust Fund. And don’t forget the MacArthur Foundation’s announcement that it is investing $32.5 million to fund affordable housing preservation efforts in 12 states, cities, and counties. This initiative is expected to preserve more than 70,000 affordable rental homes. Those are certainly bright spots for the industry.

If you have a bright spot in your organization, please let me know. You have a couple of days left to nominate a Young Leader who is making a difference in the industry. Also, don’t forget to nominate developments completed in 2008 or are expected to be completed this year for the magazine’s annual Readers’ Choice Awards [Word and PDF]. The deadline to nominate an outstanding project is April 17.