Montana & Idaho CDC is now MoFi

Montana & Idaho Community Development Corporation has changed its name to MoFi, a name that better represents its expanding geographic footprint and product line, said President Dave Glaser.

MoFi provides financing and consulting services to business and communities that are just outside the financial mainstream, with solutions including business lending and tax credit financing for businesses, nonprofits and real estate developments. It also offers down payment assistance programs to increase access to homeownership.

Glaser said the decision comes as the organization expands its Montana-Idaho footprint to include Wyoming, Eastern Washington and Eastern Oregon.

"For over 30 years, we have aggressively grown our organization to meet the needs of low- and middle-income people in our region," said Glaser. "But for many, the inequality of opportunity continues to grow. We’ve realized that the people we serve need more, so we?re responding to the need for flexible, responsible capital by expanding our reach. In addition to Montana and Idaho, we are now serving Wyoming, Eastern Washington and Eastern Oregon. We look forward to continuing our work with hardworking people and communities in pursuit of our mission, which remains unchanged: to transform the lives of individuals and strengthen community prosperity."

In 2017, MoFi provided over $11 million in small-business financing to businesses that were unable to access traditional bank capital, with roughly half that amount going to start-ups. It expects that amount to increase in 2018.

It has also been responsible for catalyzing multiple projects using New Markets Tax Credits (NMTC), a program of the U.S. Treasury that is designed to incentivize investment and development in economically underserved areas. Since 2012, MoFi has supported 34 NMTC projects totaling nearly $500 million, including the RSVP Motel (Bozeman, MT), Fresca Mexican Foods (Caldwell, ID), the Blackfeet Community College (Browning, MT) and Kootenai Health (Coeur d’Alene, ID).

This month, MoFi is also expanding its HomeNow down payment assistance program to include a second option for homebuyers – a 0%-interest, deferred loan that comes with the benefit of lower monthly payments. This option (currently available in Montana only) joins its existing down payment grant program, which it launched 16 months ago and has helped over 100 Montanans become homeowners.

"With these additions, HomeNow becomes the most widely accessible down payment assistance program to hit the streets in Montana, ever," said Glaser. "Clients can now choose between a non-repayable grant that offers immediate equity in the home, or they can choose the new 0% deferred loan program, which has lower interest rates and therefore a lower monthly payment. There are specific benefits to both options, but the end result is the same – buyers get an affordable mortgage and we provide the boost they need to overcome the down payment hurdle."

Learn more about MoFi at http://www.mofi.org