Case studies
Table of contents
Central Nebraska Joint Housing Authority
Meet our Neighbor
Central Nebraska Joint Housing Authority serves 21 counties: Blaine, Boone, Boyd, Brown, Colfax, Custer, Garfield, Greeley, Hall, Hamilton, Holt, Howard, Keya Paha, Loup, Merrick, Nance, Platte, Rock, Sherman, Valley, and Wheeler. Aside from their Housing Choice Voucher Program, they also administer Owner Occupied Rehabilitation, Weatherization, Family Self-sufficiency Program, and offer Property Management to 32 Low-Income Rental Properties.
Programs Used
- Housing Choice Voucher Program Management
Challenges
- As a small PHA, the Central Nebraska Joint Housing Authority was priced out of big software solutions.
- Had a hard time working around the limitations and challenges of HUD’s Family Reporting Software (FRS).
- Especially struggled with recurring PIC submission errors.
- High workload for new intake, since the PHA used mostly physical documents and pen-and-paper applications.
SPECIFIC GOALS
- Eliminate the pen-and-paper processes and move onto a digital platform.
- Reduce workload or personnel since there are 21 counties in their jurisdiction.
- Find a reasonably priced solution for a small Housing Authority.
- Have a short implementation timeline.
Key Results
Eliminate endless paperwork and go digital first.
Move to a platform with a modern look and feel without the need to change policies and procedures, even preserving documents from the late 80s to 90s.
Fully implement the new solution and go live in a matter of weeks.
Move away from FRS.
THE CITY OF Yankton, SD
Meet our Neighbor
The Yankton Housing and Redevelopment Commission serves tenants within Yankton County, Lake Andes City Limits, Bon Homme County, Gregory County, and Tripp County.
They manage 164 vouchers, spread out over a large geographical area.
Programs Used
- Housing Choice Voucher Program Management
Challenges
- The housing authority used multiple applications such as Word, Excel, FRS, as well as pen-and-paper and hard files to manage their vouchers.
- Unit inspections were done manually with a clipboard, over the large geographic area managed by the Housing Authority.
- As a small agency, they did not have the bandwidth to manage all the necessary tasks.
- The reduction in size of team, and employee turnover increased their urgency in finding a technology solution.
- Training new team members was difficult. Pen-and-paper procedures and handling of physical files presented a unique challenge for the more technology-inclined generations.
SPECIFIC GOALS
- Quickly and easily transition to a technology platform.
- Notify tenants and property managers of upcoming events through platform.
- Use task report to see which tasks are outstanding.
- Implement a waitlist for applicants.
- Streamline participant application process.
- Decrease amount of time spent on administrative load, reducing burnout.
- Modernize the Housing Choice Voucher process and bring innovation to the field.
Key Results
11-WEEK IMPLEMENTATION
Successfully conclude the implementation process and data import within 11 weeks.
EASY ONBOARDING
Since younger generations are more adept to technology, new hires are now onboarded quicker.
PROPERTY MANAGER PORTAL
Managing RFTAs online, now eliminating the need for pen-and-paper.
WAITLIST AND APPLICANT PORTALS
Portals are now live and receiving and processing applications.
EXTERNAL STAKEHOLDER PORTAL
Community Action agencies review their own caseloads, upload documents, and notify PHA of household changes.
TECHNOLOGY TRAILBLAZER
Yankton is an early adopter, working alongside Neighborly Software to continually innovate our solution.
CITY OF FORT WORTH, TX
Meet our Neighbor
Programs Used
- Affordable Housing
- Lead-Safe Housing
- ERAP Subrecipients
- Emergency Solutions Grants
- HOME-ARP NOFA
- CAP
- Healthy Homes for Heroes
- HOPWA
- Permanent Supportive Housing
- Public Service Agencies
- Tenant-Based Rental Assistance
- regular HOME
- HUD Notice of Funding Opportunities
- Multi-Family Weatherization Assistance
- Non-Government Organization Grants
- Priority Repair
- Asset Module
- DR
Challenges
- Case file information existed in multiple locations and formats and became unmanageable.
- Tracking was manually updated, required external department involvement, and was inefficient.
- We had difficulties administering funding quickly and in a user-friendly way.
- Reporting wasn’t real-time and compliance was very difficult to track.
Key Results
Neighborly Software provides the City of Fort Worth an automated and efficient way to manage multiple programs with:
Optimized Reporting
Budgeting and spending is tracked and managed from a single view and is streamlined.
Fully Compliant
CDBG funding is automatically structured in the system’s configuration. The audit log allows for use internally and externally.
Centralized For All Users
Staff and community members alike find the software intuitive and easy to use. They can check on project and case status, and easily request draws.
Fully Configured
Application structure, processes, and reporting are fully configurable, enabling us to have greater community impact.
City of Columbia, MO
Meet our Neighbor
Programs Used
- Down-Payment Assistance
- Minor Home Repair
- Housing Rehabilitation
- Community Land Trust
- CDBG Public Services
- Property Acquisition & Demolition
Challenges
- Eliminating the multiple spreadsheets and legacy Access database used to administer and track programs and loans.
- Providing greater transparency into funding decisions.
- Reducing staff time required to prepare for internal and external audits.
- Providing an auditable way to track and report on program accomplishments.
Key Results
Neighborly Software enables the City to efficiently manage all of its intake, compliance, reporting, funding, and loan management activities in one comprehensive solution – a solution specifically designed for Housing, Economic and Community Development organizations:
Managing a complex and growing loan portfolio, consisting of 750+ amortizing, deferred and forgivable loans.
Providing more transparency in the application scoring and funding decisions of proposed public service projects.
Enabling real time visibility into funding balances by year and program, including required set asides.
Reducing staff time by 20% in preparing for internal and external audits.
Habitat for Humanity Greater Fresno Area, CA
Meet our Neighbor
Habitat for Humanity Greater Fresno Area serves a combined population of 1.15 Million people and improves the housing conditions of 100 families per year.
To date, Habitat of Greater Fresno Area has leveraged Neighborly Software to administer $1.6 Million in Housing Rehabilitation (CDBG) funds. This funding has provided assistance to over 150 families by preserving existing housing through minor beautification and major rehabilitation projects.
Programs Used
- Housing and Rehabilitation
Challenges
- Case file information existed in multiple locations and formats and became unmanageable.
- Tracking was outdated, required external department involvement and was formatted incorrectly.
- Family Services (Intake), Construction, Project Management, and Accounting were disconnected and required additional administrative oversight to compile information.
- CDBG compliance was very difficult to track.
Key Results
Optimized Reporting
No longer relies on the accounting dept. for outdated financial information.
Fully Compliant
CDBG funding is automatically structured in the system’s configuration.
Centralized Contractor Management
No longer looking through emails for information.
Fully Configured
Application structure, processes, and reporting are fully configurable, enabling us to have greater community impact.
Pompano Beach, FL
Meet our Neighbor
Located just north of Fort Lauderdale, in the heart of Florida’s Gold Coast, the City of Pompano Beach is home to clear ocean waters, golden sandy beaches, accessible marinas and a colorful offshore coral reef. Over 110,000 people call Pompano Beach home with just over 23% of its population living below the poverty level. The City’s Office of Housing and Urban Improvement (OHUI) is responsible for administering roughly $2.3M annually in federal and state funds to assist in the development and redevelopment of a viable community which provides affordable housing, economic opportunity, and a safe living environment.
Programs Used
- Housing Rehabilitation
- Emergency Housing Repair
- Down-Payment Assistance
- Wind Mitigation
- Public Service Grants (CDBG)
Challenges
- Reducing the risk of noncompliance with applicable laws and regulations associated with failure to follow established procedures.
- Eliminating the inefficiency and compliance risk associated with paper applications and multiple Excel spreadsheets used to track and manage OHUI programs.
- Reducing administrative expenses related to paper, printing and document storage.
Key Results
In partnering with Neighborly Software, OHUI is leveraging the system’s workflow to ensure that all compliance steps and approvals are completed. The software is simultaneously reducing OHUI’s administrative costs by automating routine tasks and reporting requirements:
Reducing the time to produce monthly CAPER and compliance reports from 3 days to 1 day.
Avoiding the need to replace an open intake position, thereby reducing personnel costs by $32,000 annually.
Decreasing paper, printing and document storage costs by an average of $780 per month ($9,000+ per year).
Reducing the average time to process subrecipient and contractor reimbursement requests by 2 days.
Prince William County, VA
Meet our Neighbor
Located on the Potomac River in Virginia, Prince William County is the second-most populous county in the state and home to over 470,000 people. PWC’s Office of Housing and Community Development is responsible for administering roughly $19M in Pandemic and annual federal and state funds that provide affordable housing, create economic opportunity, and a safe living environment.
Programs Used
-
Rehabilitation (CDBG)
- First Time Homebuyer (HOME)
- Emergency Housing Assistance (CARES Act)
- CDBG Competitive Grant (CDBG)
-
Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG)
- Affordable Rentals
Challenges
- Inefficient processes & manual workflows.
- Untimely delivery of program funding.
- Incomplete reporting and data sharing due to outdated system.
- Inability to accept online applications for program assistance.
Key Results
By partnering with Neighborly Software, PWC automated routine tasks and reduced administrative inefficiencies. With a newly established set of tools, templates and technology, PWC is able to accelerate program execution, achieve precision with loan reviews and underwriting, generate good data for reporting, effectively manage costs and meet schedule objectives. This translates to on-time performance and cost efficiency and a lasting, positive impact on PWC’s community:
Reduced production time of federal & local Compliance reports.
An online application feature crucial in helping 833 households with CARES Act Funding.
Precision with loan review, cost management and project execution.
Ability to meet expedited program timelines.
City of Savannah, GA
Meet our Neighbor
Programs Used
- Down-Payment Home Purchase
- Employer Assisted Home Purchase
- Volunteer Home Repair
- Veteran Home Repair
- Disaster Home Repair
- Home Repair/Rehabilitation
- Home Construction/Development
- Rental Property Repair/Construction
- Rental Property Development
Challenges
- Reducing staff time spent chasing incomplete applications and/or missing documentation.
- Reducing staff time required to input, manage and tabulate data in excel spreadsheets.
- Tracking and managing a diverse range of projects with both singular and multiple funding sources.
- Reporting real time program results to key stakeholders.
- Providing an easier way to securely store and retrieve sensitive data related to personally identifiable information.
- Increasing staff capacity for customer outreach and service.
Key Results
In partnering with Neighborly Software, Savannah’s Housing Department is benefitting from a comprehensive, user friendly, software solution that has helped the Department:
Improve customer service, responsiveness, and oversight.
Increase by 95% the speed and accuracy of data inputted and managed by staff.
Reduce by 50% staff time spent reviewing and qualifying applicants.
Reduce monthly reporting errors by 96%.
Reallocate ~10% of staffs’ time to customer outreach and program activity.