The Bridge Fund of New York City

A Program of The Bridge Fund of New York Inc.

Today, thousands of New Yorkers still find it hard to believe that the recession is over. Too many have lost their jobs and exhausted their savings. And those who are still working are coping with significantly reduced circumstances and the real threat of losing their housing. As a result, in 2010, a total of 8,407 households, more than double the number in 2008, asked The Bridge Fund for help.

Our success in serving most of these households last year, and preventing at least 1,891 individuals, including 728 children, from being evicted or foreclosed depended on the commitment of our dedicated staff and the lessons learned during this most difficult period in our City’s history. We know that our success also depends on our partnering with public and private agencies that help us address our clients’ rental or mortgage arrears. Their $783,482 assistance plus our interest-free loans and grants, totaling $1,487,667, and the $862,087 that clients themselves contributed ensured that all these clients’ arrears were paid.

Moving forward, we anticipate serious challenges and count on all our stakeholders for their continued help and guidance. We know that even clients who are current on their rent are, nevertheless, at risk of losing their affordable housing. This is because the rent- stabilization law that helps protect New Yorkers from unusually high rent increases is due to expire on June 15, 2011. This will affect more than two million individuals residing in approximately one million New York City apartments. While related, this issue should not be confused with the work of the Rent Guidelines Board, which holds annual public hearings and decides future rent increases of rent-stabilized apartments. Without rent-stabilization, landlords will undoubtedly charge market rents that would be unaffordable to Bridge Fund clients, who may be forced to leave the area or reside in unsafe, overcrowded conditions.

Unemployment and underemployment are still problems for many of our clients. Before the start of the recession, which according to the National Bureau of Economic Research officially began in December 2007, only about 4 percent of Bridge Fund clients were unemployed. Today, about 24 percent are receiving unemployment insurance benefits and/or working part-time. Even those with full-time jobs are finding it difficult to make ends meet. For this reason, we continue to provide intensive budget counseling, benefits assessment and advocacy, plus information and referral services. Formally supporting our clients’ efforts to improve their job prospects so they can better maintain their long-term financial and housing stability will be the overriding goals of The Bridge Fund of New York City in the years to come. With help from our stakeholders, we know that we will be able to make a lasting and critical difference for many.

The Bridge Fund of New York City
Program Activity 2009-2010

1. Assistance may be loans or grants, critical information and referrals, budget counseling.
2. Bridge Fund households can receive a combination of loans and grants.
3. Funding secured by The Bridge Fund partnering with other agencies.
4. Money accumulated by client, but insufficient to resolve housing crisis.
5. Clients can repay as little as $5 per month upto $100 per month.

__________________
In NYC, our average assistance is $1,784 per household.

Our clients pay 39% of their net income on rent

Of our clients, 38% are children.

Client Demographics:

• 69% African/American
• 22% Hispanic
• 8% Caucasian
• 1% Asian

Advisory Committee

Gregory Floyd
President, City Employees Union Local 237

Angela Hollis, MBA
President Hollis Group, LLC; Formerly Director of Advancement, New York City Mission Society

Pritpal Kochbar
Property Management

Douglass Seidman
Attorney, The Legal Aid Society

Wingson Wong
Coordinator of Community Relations, Division of Institutional Advancement, John Jay College of Criminal Justice

Erika Wood
Attorney, New York University Law School