Dear Neighbor,

At Housing Trust, we are on a mission to solve the affordable housing crisis in the greater Bay Area. We use transformative housing finance and public and private partnerships to create more equitable and affordable communities. We do this one development, one home, one homebuyer at a time, and we multiply the impact. Meeting the neighbors whose lives have changed as a result of this important work is one of the highlights. They are real people, with real life stories that we will always remember.

There is the story of Kimberly who was so thankful for the things that most people take for granted, such as being able to lock her door, having keys to a mailbox, and being able to cook in her own kitchen.

There is also the story of Amy and Eric, a young professional couple who never imagined that they could purchase their first home – a 2 bedroom, 2 bath condo – with $193,500 in down payment assistance, thanks to the County of Santa Clara’s Empower Homebuyers program, which we administer.

These are the real-life stories of our neighbors. Their stories of resilience, determination, hope, and pride warm our hearts every day and remind us why we chose to work in the affordable housing space.

Our efforts this past year have helped us to cumulatively invest $555 million in affordable housing, resulting in the creation of more than 26,000 housing opportunities, helping more than 49,000 of our neighbors.

I am thankful to our partners, investors, mission-driven developers, public sector officials and their staffs, and all the like-minded colleagues who champion the urgent need for more affordable housing. I am also grateful to the Housing Trust staff for their dedication to our mission. We also truly appreciate our Board of Directors, whose expertise and support is invaluable.

This year marks my 30th anniversary working in the affordable housing/community development field. I could not have imagined those many years ago that this would become my life’s work and do not take for granted the privilege it is to work with amazing colleagues and peers who share in our vision of building more equitable and resilient communities for all of our neighbors.

Creating and preserving more affordable homes and spaces where our vulnerable neighbors can thrive is our daily motivation at Housing Trust. There is still much more we need to do to move the needle on the affordable housing crisis. When everyone in the community has access to safe, stable, and affordable housing, we all benefit.

With gratitude,

Noni Ramos
Chief Executive Officer,
Housing Trust Silicon Valley

Noni Ramos

"These are the real-life stories of our neighbors. Their stories of resilience, determination, hope, and pride warm our hearts every day and remind us why we chose to work in the affordable housing space."