Giving Thanks for Providers of Affordable Housing

With Thanksgiving just a couple of days away, I've been thinking about what I’m thankful for this year. Of course I’m thankful for my family and friends, my colleagues, my health, my job, and, of course, my home.

After a staggering year of job losses and foreclosures in the nation, I’m especially thankful for my home.

An article in last week’s Idaho Statesman, my local newspaper, detailed the waiting lists at the area’s homeless shelters and how they are seeing newly homeless people on a daily basis. At one Boise shelter on a recent night, there were 25 people on a waiting list for a place to sleep. These shelters are at capacity, even resorting to letting people sleep on the floors so they can be indoors during the cold winter nights.

A report that came out last week from the Mortgage Bankers Association found that 14 percent of the nation’s homeowners were either behind on payments or in foreclosure at the end of September. And the foreclosure forecast doesn’t look to be improving in the near future.

Working for Affordable Housing Finance magazine makes me even more aware of the housing woes around the nation, but at the same time makes me even more appreciative of the people we write for and feature in the magazine and Web site.

I commend all of the people who have taken on this mission to provide safe and decent affordable housing. The job might have gotten even harder this past year, but the work you do—whether it’s developing a project, managing a project, providing the legal know-how, or financing the project—to put roofs over low- and moderate-income Americans’ heads is admirable.

I wish everyone a happy Thanksgiving and that you can take a break and reflect on what you’re thankful for this year.