As real estate investors big and small pile into the distressed single family housing market (i.e. chasing short sales and foreclosures), one non-profit player has chosen Atlanta for its pilot program. Community land banks and other organizations trying to create affordable housing out of the nation's healthy inventory of empty houses is nothing new, but Builders Of Hope is adding an element: green. An investor has given the non-profit $100 million to invest in acquiring REO real estate (with a focus on infill neighborhoods) and rehab the homes using sustainable methods, with a goal of delivering healthier, energy efficient homes to people of low and moderate incomes. BOH has chosen Atlanta to spend $30 million on some 500 homes in a pilot program, perhaps due to the expertise of one its board members, Victoria Philips, a retired Housing Director for the Atlanta Housing Authority. [AJC]
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