ABOUT THE COMMUNITY HOUSING FUND
The Sun Valley real estate community recognizes that Blaine County is a richer, more vibrant place when people who work in the community also live in the community. Thus, the Community Housing Fund was born.
The Community Housing Fund is a proactive way for real estate agents and brokers, buyers, and sellers to bridge the gap between what a home now costs in our community and what our local essential workers can afford.
What is an “essential” worker?
Essential workers are people who make a community thrive and provide a service which cannot be provided remotely. These are the “boots on the ground” people who are:
First Responders (firefighters, police, paramedics, health care providers)
Teachers and Child Care Providers
Construction Workers (plumbers, electricians and carpenters)
Retail Employees who stock shelves, sell skis and fly rods, and wrench your car when it breaks down.
Bus Drivers who bring essential workers to and fro.
Since the pandemic, the list can be expanded to include librarians, non-profit employees, and restaurant, bar and coffee shop workers.
The list goes on.
Essential workers are dedicated, hardworking professionals who call the Wood River Valley “home,” but most often struggle to find stable and affordable workforce housing.
Sun Valley REALTORS Give’s Community Housing Fund has the financial support of 100% of the realtors, brokers and affiliates in the Sun Valley MLS.
With a $10,000 gift from the Sun Valley Board of Realtors and an anonymous $25,000 donation, the Community Housing Fund was created in January 2024.
Before launching the program, the Community Housing Fund raised over $110,000 from Founding Donors, Ambassadors of the Fund and Friends of the Fund. Fundraising will continue through 2024 and beyond with the Closings with a Cause program. At the closing table, we ask buyers, sellers, Realtors and brokers to contribute to non-profit entities creating workforce housing for essential workers in Blaine County. Grants will also provide housing assistance by bridging the gap in a buyer’s down payment, buying down an interest rate to make a loan more affordable, or contributing towards closing costs.
“It is an honor and a privilege to be a part of the SVRG Community Housing Fund, a program which received the unanimous support of our Board!
The Sun Valley Realtors Give Community Housing Fund ensures that the teachers who shape our children's futures, the restaurant workers who feed us, the first responders and nurses who take care of us, and the shop and business employees who keep things going, have an opportunity to call this wonderful and generous community HOME. We are hopeful that these essential workers who give so much and are a part of the fabric of this community can live with housing security.”
Cathy Nikolaisons
Executive Director of Sun Valley REALTORS Give
On spearheading the Community Housing Fund, Sheila Liermann, a retired associate broker said, “I moved to the Wood River Valley in 1980 with a pair of skis, a degree in finance, and thirty bucks I borrowed from my little brother. I’ve been able to thrive in this community because I moved here during a very different economic time, one in which you could work your way towards home ownership by grit, a bit of luck and working multiple jobs. Homeownership for many is now virtually impossible with our escalated real estate prices. My dream is for the Community Housing Fund and our generous friends and neighbors to acknowledge and support those hard working people who contribute to our community on so many levels and deserve the stability and benefits of affordable workforce housing.”
Sheila Liermann, Retired Associate Broker
Mission Statement
SUN VALLEY REALTORS GIVE COMMUNITY HOUSING FUND
Sun Valley REALTORS Give is a non-profit charitable organization under the 501(c)(3) IRS code. Our Community Housing Fund raises money for entities creating workforce housing opportunities for essential workers in Blaine County so they are able to live and thrive in or near the community where they work.
Administration of the Fund is made possible by Sun Valley REALTORS Give. In turn, Sun Valley REALTORS Give’s commitment to workforce housing is leveraged by the expertise of non-profit workforce-housing developers and other organizations with a demonstrated track record of success and who share the goals of Sun Valley REALTORS Give.
COMMUNITY HOUSING FUND COMMITTEE
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Cathy Nikolaisons
Executive Director, SVRG; Realtor, Keller Williams Sun Valley
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Sheila Liermann
Chair; Associate Broker, Sun Valley Real Estate LLC, Retired
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Bob Crosby
Government Affairs Director, Sun Valley Board of Realtors
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Ellie Ellis
Associate Broker, Coldwell Banker Distinctive Properties
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Gary Maxwell
Vice President Team Leader, Sun Valley Title
ADVISORY COMMITTEE
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Buck Drew
Retired Dentist; First participant as a Seller in Ketchum’s Deed-Restricted Program -
Charles Friedman
Mortgage Loan Officer, DL Evans Bank -
Anna Mathieu
Associate Broker, Windermere Real Estate -
Christy A. McPherson
Certified Public Accountant -
Ana Torres
President, Mortgage Solutions -
Lindsay Zondag
Senior Loan Officer, loanDepot
