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Information About Innovation:

Title:

Preserving Homeownership and Savings Education Strategy (PHASES)

Contest Category:

Innovative post-purchase strategies for consumers - 2008

Summary:

Money Management International launched an innovative post-purchase strategy for consumers in 2007 that includes online education and grants up to $5,000 for qualifying homeowners. A generous $1,000,000 donation from the HSBC Finance Corporation provided the pool of $800,000 to help bring homeowners current on mortgages. Entitled Preserving Homeownership and Savings Education Strategy (PHASES), the program has helped over 1,400 households with education and has awarded grants totaling $438,238.

Description:

The Money Management International Preserving Homeownership and Savings Education Strategy Program (PHASES) is designed to assist families who have experienced temporary financial distress which has caused them to be at least one payment past due on their mortgage loan. PHASES provides a grant of up to $5,000 to pay the past due mortgage amount, past due amounts on vehicle loans, and other debt identified by Money Management International (MMI).

This unique early-intervention program differs from others in that it specifically targets individuals who, if their accounts were not past due, would have a likelihood of avoiding foreclosure and making their future mortgage payments on time.

The PHASES program is innovative in that it provides extensive financial education services and counseling services along with the grants. This educational support is a critical benefit added to the participating households, even if they do not eventually qualify for a grant. The emphasis on educational support arises from the heart of the MMI mission, “We change lives through financial education.”

Since PHASES began in July 2007 over 9,700 consumers visited the web site; 1,406 completed the online educational course; 708 of these households met preliminary eligibility criteria and downloaded the grant application; and 121 applicants have already received grants totaling $438,238.

MMI evaluates and measures outcomes daily to determine the number of consumers who access or complete each part of the program.
Clients who completed the online PHASES course in the first eight months of the program had an average household income of $49,273, with an average median income of $66,608. They have an average annual household income that is 78% of their area’s median income and 59% qualify as low- to moderate-income households with an annual income that is at or below 80% of their area’s median income. The clients are drawn from fifteen states and multiple communities within the states.

In addition to utilization rates and initial reported income, MMI measures longer-term outcomes in four areas:
• Change in attitude: All applicants are required to complete a pre-program Financial Analysis to determine their attitudes about financial matters. This analysis is compared to a post-program analysis to determine whether their attitudes about financial matters change during the program.

• Change in knowledge: All applicants who take the comprehensive online education course are required to complete a pre- and post-test to determine whether they gain knowledge while taking the course.

• Change in behavior: All applicants are required to complete a pre-program Self Assessment Test to determine how they manage their day-to-day financial lives. These results are compared to a post-program Self Assessment Test to determine whether they change their financial behavior.

• Change in credit standing: MMI obtains a FICO score for all grant recipients at the onset of the program, six months into the program, and at the conclusion of the program. MMI compares these scores to determine how they change during the course of the program.

Projected Annual Operating Cost:

MMI projects annual operating costs in calendar year 2008 in two ways: costs that are already funded and expansion costs for which additional funding is sought.

The initial grant of $1,000,000 provides funding for a 12-month pilot program that began in July 2007 and includes fifteen states. The costs include $800,000 for direct grants to consumers and $200,000 for online education, counseling services, and public awareness.

Looking forward to a program expansion in 2008-2009, MMI projects annual direct costs of $2,497,000 to reach consumers in all fifty states. For the twelve-month period starting July 2008 costs include $1,720,000 for direct grants to consumers; $690,000 for direct services to consumers including intake, twelve months of counseling, intensive online education, measurement of changes in financial outcomes and behaviors, extensive mailings and communications, and credit scores; $60,000 for outreach and public awareness; and $27,100 for operations and reporting.

Specific Outcomes or Results in Calender Year 2008:

MMI projects outcomes or results in calendar year 2008 in two ways: outcomes that are already funded and proposed outcomes for which additional funding is being sought.

Fully-funded projected outcomes for 2008:
• Available to consumers in 15 states;
• $400,000 in grants to consumers; (the remainder of the initial $800,000);
• 10,000 visitors to www.MMIPhases.org;
• 3,000 consumers complete the PHASES online education;
• 1,500 meet preliminary eligibility criteria to download the grant application;
• An additional 110 households receive grants; and
• Grant funds exhausted by 6/30/08.

Proposed outcomes, with additional funding of $2,497,000:
• Available to consumers in all 50 states;
• Up to $1,720,000 in grants to consumers;
• 20,000 visitors to www.MMIPhases.org;
• 6,000 consumers complete the PHASES online education;
• 3,000 meet preliminary eligibility criteria to download the grant application;
• Up to an additional 430 households receive grants; and
• Grant funds sufficient to carry into 2009.

Web Site (optional):

http://www.MMIPhases.com

Information About Organization:

Name:

Money Management International, Inc.

Address 1:

9009 West Loop South

Address 2:

Suite 700

City, State, Zip:

Houston, TX 77096-1719

501c3 Non-Profit:

yes

Contact Name:

Ann Woods

Contact E-Mail:

Ann.Woods@MoneyManagement.org

Contact Phone:

602/674-4688

Keywords:

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