The National Community Reinvestment Coalition (NCRC) will grant $1.34 million to 95 HUD-approved housing counseling agencies under the NCRC Field Empowerment Fund – Housing Counseling Services program.
“NCRC is deeply committed to expanding our support for housing counseling agencies as they are truly the backbone of moving families from aspiration to ownership. So much of our advocacy work is aimed at shaping policy and encouraging lenders to make resources available, and that work translates into real change when housing counselors are there to walk families through the process,” said Jesse Van Tol, NCRC’s President and CEO. “They turn commitments on paper into actual opportunities for people trying to build a stronger financial future. We don’t talk enough about how central that role is to making stable housing through homeownership genuinely accessible to everyone. We are glad to partner with Key Bank and HSBC Bank USA, N.A. to bolster the housing counseling services available to families in their footprints.”
The Field Empowerment Fund (FEF) enables NCRC network members to level up established housing counseling service lines. With the award of this grant cycle, NCRC has provided $9.46 million to 154 NCRC member organizations through the fund since its inception in 2021.
The Housing Counseling Services series within FEF supports HUD-approved housing counseling agencies in driving homeownership through pre-purchase counseling. In addition, the program builds agency knowledge on heirs’ property challenges to better equip low-wealth homebuying households with the know-how to begin their homeownership journey, with an additional goal of ensuring foresight into the long-term future of their home purchase.
The FEF-HCS series is funded in partnership with KeyBank and HSBC Bank USA, N.A. and targets communities within the KeyBank and HSBC Bank USA, N.A. branch footprints.
The 2026 NCRC Field Empowerment Fund – Housing Counseling Services grantees can be viewed here.
Annually, these agencies serve nearly 85,000 households across the United States, with nearly 63,000 of those households falling under 80% of their regional median income levels. This grant funding will fuel their critical services, empowering families across the country to achieve housing stability and homeownership.
For more information about the Field Empowerment Fund, visit NCRC.org/fef.
