About Fifth Ward Community Redevelopment Corporation
The Fifth Ward Community Redevelopment Corporation (CRC) has served as a catalyst for holistic community development in the historic neighborhood of 5th Ward for 30 years. The organization has built or renovated more than 1,000 housing units, 40,000 square feet of commercial space, and developed cultural and park spaces to create places and opportunities for people to live, work and play.
About the Position
The Fifth Ward Community Redevelopment Corporation seeks a Housing Counselor Intake Specialist to support its Homeownership Preservation and Promotion (HOPP) Program, which has been expanded to include disaster recovery efforts in Houston's historic 5th Ward. This role will provide critical educational, supportive, and counseling services to ensure that families develop and achieve a personalized pathway to homeownership or housing recovery.
The Intake Specialist will provide support to the Housing Counselors & Program Manager. Housing Counselor Intake Specialist is vital to the client's process and experience with the agency as the first point of contact. The Housing Counselor Intake Specialist will assist in the daily counseling and preparation of client files, client data management system, filling, compliance and the homebuyer education program operations and more.
Fifth Ward CRC is an inclusive organization and the Intake Specialist must be comfortable interacting with people from all walks of life.
Job duties
- Assesses clients' financial situation based on the information furnished by the client.
- Assist clients in developing a budget and setting financial goals
- Assist clients with document collection, generate client files and logs into client management system.
- Provides general information to clients including, but not limited to budgeting, mortgages, credit reports, housing issues, consumer protection laws, down payment assistance, homestead exemptions, foreclosure, loan restructuring, etc.
- Informs clients of the agency services, makes referrals and performs client file audit for HUD reporting purposes
- Produces written action plan that supports and promotes the clients' best interest or the clients' choice of action and motivates the client to implement the established plan.
- Performs elements of on-going case work as needed to provide service and problem-solving assistance for client.
- Prepares materials and coordinates class needs for Homebuyers Education classes, all workshops, lunch N learns and all other events and programming associated with Homeownership, promotion and preservation
- Provide survey data and gathers class data for class information to ensure course satisfaction managing client dissatisfaction and communicating effectively.
- Researches locations and cost effective ways to provide courses and workshops to community
- Works closely with marketing to ensure SM accounts, website and marketing materials are revised, up to date prepared for distribution
- Ability to meet, beat and/or exceed monthly/quarterly/annually goals set in performance work plan and organization strategic goals
- Assist with volunteer coordination for disaster relief services and other community rebuilding and repair services
- Participates in special projects as assigned by management.
- Attend and assist with department programming to ensure compliance and operational excellence
- Associates degree or 5 years in social work, business administration, public administration, community development, or related field preferred.
- Two years' experience in performing administrative work
- Strong interpersonal, speaking and writing skills
- Excellent Customer service and customer assurance skills
- Ability to work cohesively in an team environment daily
- Experience in managing case files, entering data into databases, pulling and preparing reports, and completing tasks for compliance
- Experience working with a vulnerable or marginalized population such as low-income families, underserved populations, or disaster victims
- Excellent time management skills, including attention to details and ability to trouble-shoot and be resourceful
- Ability to identify and analyze issues, and develop alternative courses of action using creativity and problem-solving skills to get the job done
- Knowledge of spreadsheet, word processing software,
- Bachelor's degree in social work, business administration, public administration, community development, or related field preferred.
- Salesforce
- Bilingual/Spanish preferred
Must successfully pass HUD Certification exam within 1 year of hire and obtain Housing Counselor certification within 18 months from hire.
Other Skills and Abilities
Ability to work flexible hours as necessary, to include some Saturdays
Physical Demands
- Sedentary work. Exerting up to 10 pounds of force occasionally and/or negligible amount of force frequently or constantly to lift, carry, push, pull or otherwise move objects. Repetitive motion.
- Substantial movements (motions) of the wrists, hands, and/or fingers.
- Required to have close visual acuity to perform an activity such as: preparing and analyzing data and figures; transcribing; viewing a computer terminal; extensive reading.
- Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.