Housing Recovery Subject of Minority Real Estate Professionals Meeting

The ""National Association of Real Estate Brokers"":http://www.nareb.com (NAREB) convenes its 63rd National Convention as economic volatility, high foreclosure rates, and continued unemployment contribute further to the already-precarious conditions of the nation's housing marketplace.

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Meeting under the banner, ""REALTISTS…Restoring and Serving Our Communities with Integrity, Trust and Truth,"" July 29 through August 4, at the Renaissance Worthington Hotel in Fort Worth, Texas, conference attendees are expected to discuss innovative approaches and cross-sector strategies that can be employed to rebuild confidence in the nation's housing market, and at the same time protect financially-distressed homeowners.

""Economic recovery for African-American and other homeowners of color is far in the offing,"" commented Vincent Wimbish, president and CEO of NAREB, the nation's oldest minority professional trade group. ""Foreclosures are commonplace in too many of our communities. Prospective homebuyers remain skittish about the real value of an investment in a home. They're sitting on the sidelines inadvertently contributing to destabilized neighborhoods and communities.""

NAREB's upcoming convention brings together stakeholders in the real estate, financial services, and government arenas. Keynote speakers and participants

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include top-level mortgage executives from JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo Home Mortgage, Bank of America, Vendor Resource Management, and Compliance Technologies. Representatives from the Center for Responsible Lending, the Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco, and HUD are also slated to participate.

NAREB says the convention program line-up reflects the organization's intent to help financially-strapped homeowners in a more efficient manner than is currently available, to educate and prepare prospective buyers for sustainable homeownership, and to ensure that its members are trained and certified in professional areas that support neighborhood revitalization.

Among the planned workshops and panel discussions is a session for real estate brokers looking toward entering or expanding their REO book of business; a HUD-conducted seminar geared specifically to appraisers and underwriters; and insight from top banking officials on the changing financial landscape.

This year for the first time, NAREB, in conjunction with NID Housing Counseling Agency, is hosting ""Community Day,"" on Saturday, July 31 at the Fort Worth Event Center. Area residents are invited to attend this free-of-charge event to seek assistance for homeowners experiencing mortgage problems or facing foreclosure, senior home owners who want information about reverse mortgages, or prospective first-time homebuyers looking for credit guidance.

""We urge the coming together in meaningful dialogue of policy makers; financial services executives; civil, human, and economic rights organizations; real estate professionals; housing advocates, and homeownership counselors to set a multi-pronged action agenda that serves as the platform for homeowner relief, and a launching pad for renewed confidence in the housing marketplace,"" Wimbish said. ""Working in concert with every sector, our communities stand a better chance of real economic recovery and sustained revitalization.""