California Association of REALTORS(R) Joins Fannie Mae to Launch Employer Assisted Housing Initiative For Workforce Employees Across the State.

SAN DIEGO -- Representatives from the California Association of REALTORS(R) (C.A.R.), Assemblymember Juan Vargas (D-San Diego), local lenders, and Fannie Mae today announced the C.A.R. Employer Assisted Housing Program, an innovative effort to increase affordable homeownership opportunities for California's workforce through access to housing information and education, homeownership assistance, and low-cost financing options. Through the combined efforts of real estate professionals, lending and business partners, this initiative will utilize Employer Assisted Housing (EAH) benefit plans to achieve its goal of increasing housing and economic development opportunities throughout the state.

Research shows that although most Americans desire homeownership, understanding the homebuying process and obtaining funds for the downpayment and closing costs remain the primary hurdles for many families seeking a mortgage loan. Employers can help employees realize their dreams of homeownership by offering an EAH benefit plan. Employers can choose from a variety of EAH benefit options including access to homebuying workshops provided by participating real estate professionals, or a financial benefit, such as a loan or grant to help fund downpayments, closing costs or interest rate buy-downs. In turn, EAH will serve as a tool employers can use to attract and retain qualified employees, revitalize neighborhoods, and reduce employee commutes.

"C.A.R. created this initiative to empower our members to provide a new resource to meet the region's critical need for affordable homeownership, and we appreciate Fannie Mae's strong support in helping us achieve this goal," said C.A.R. President Jim Hamilton. "By working with local chambers of commerce, participating lenders, and local governments, we hope to make homeownership more accessible for working Californians."

Demonstrating its commitment to promoting homeownership opportunities, C.A.R. recently announced that it will offer EAH benefits to its employees through the program.

As part of the initiative, more than 150 REALTORS(R) received training on EAH today at the C.A.R. Centennial REALTOR(R) EXPO, being held at the San Diego Convention Center from Sept. 20- 22. REALTORS(R) will educate employers on the benefits of implementing EAH plans and will conduct homebuying workshops for employers and their employees. Fannie Mae will provide free tools to employers to help them design an EAH plan that fits their business goals. C.A.R. also will promote EAH to local REALTOR(R) Associations. Participating lenders, including CitiMortgage, GMAC and Washington Mutual, will offer low-cost financing options.

"Homeownership is key to stabilizing communities and increasing economic opportunities, and we want to encourage businesses to invest in their employees by offering housing benefits," said Carl San Miguel, chair of C.A.R.'s Housing Affordability Fund. "Giving employees the resources they need to become homeowners is one of the most valuable investments a company can make."

Monies from the C.A.R. Housing Affordability Fund are distributed through local REALTOR(R) associations that submit requests for programs that directly address housing affordability and housing supply issues within their communities. Since delivering its first grant to the Monterey County Housing Alliance Housing Opportunity Center in 2003, the fund has disbursed more than $784,000 to 28 projects, ranging from Habitat for Humanity to employer-assisted housing programs.

"C.A.R. and Fannie Mae should be applauded for working together to make homeownership a reality for more working families," said Assemblymember Vargas. "As a member of this community, I understand the importance of helping people fulfill their dreams of homeownership. Through the success of C.A.R.'s EAH Initiative, housing partners and employers across the state will have the opportunity to take part in this effort."

Assemblymember Juan Vargas represents the 79th assembly district in the California State Legislature, which includes Coronado, National City, Imperial Beach, and parts of San Diego and Chula Vista.

"We know from Fannie Mae's experience that EAH initiatives can serve as an excellent recruitment and retention tool," said Michael Hernandez, vice president of Fannie Mae's Western Office for Housing and Community Development. "This initiative will be supported by lenders through whom Fannie Mae offers a variety of affordable mortgage products to assist workforce families with achieving homeownership."

Employers interested in learning more about how to develop EAH plans under the C.A.R. Initiative should call Fannie Mae at 1-800-7FANNIE (1-800-732-6643).

Fannie Mae is a New York Stock Exchange company and the largest non-bank financial services company in the world. It operates pursuant to a federal charter and is the nation's largest source of financing for home mortgages. Since 1968, Fannie Mae has provided $4.8 trillion of mortgage financing for more than 52 million families. More information about Fannie Mae can be found on the Internet at http://www.fanniemae.com.

Style Usage: Fannie Mae's Board of Directors has authorized the company to operate as "Fannie Mae," and the company's stock is now listed on the NYSE as "FNM
FNM Free National Movement (Bahamas)
FNM Foot and Mouth ." In order to facilitate clarity and avoid confusion, news organizations are asked to refer to the company exclusively as "Fannie Mae."

Leading the Way...(R) in California real estate for 100 years, the California Association of REALTORS(R) (www.car.org) is one of the largest state trade organizations in the United States, with more than 180,000 members dedicated to the advancement of professionalism in real estate. C.A.R. is headquartered in Los Angeles.

Today's release also is available on C.A.R. Online at http://www.car.org/index.php?id=MzU1MTA=