Not long ago, the road traveled by housing counselors and their clients "diverged in a yellow wood".
Before the housing crisis and economic meltdown in Arizona, housing counselors helped families find their way to homeownership. The families learned the tools to become responsible borrowers and homeowners. The road to homeownership was smoothly paved with successful events culminating in the joyful purchase of a first home.
Now housing counselors have become foreclosure specialists, helping homeowners to save their homes. The road to foreclosure prevention is bumpy, filled with potholes of frustration, and ever-shifting requirements and products. Counselors now must be part financials experts/part social workers, as they help people in the most dire of situations, steps away from homelessness.
Most housing counselors in Arizona work for small nonprofits struggling to stay afloat. In the past month, two housing counseling agencies have been forced to close their doors.
It's time to value our housing counselors and give them the resources they need to ensure their sustainability. In the future, Arizona will need housing counselors that can help families navigate both roads, the bumpy road to foreclosure prevention and the smoother road to homeownership.
Housing counselors were forced to take the road less traveled by, but they have made all the difference.
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