AHCOPA Opens West Philadelphia Office

AHCOPA celebrated the grand opening of its new office location in West Philadelphia to help residents facing foreclosure and increase homeownership for low and moderate income residents, especially Black communities.

Homeownership rates for Black, African American residents have declined in West Philadelphia—by as much as 20% in the past five years— AHCOPA is working to change that. As a trusted community partner and HUD-Certified, non-profit housing counseling agency, AHCOPA is expanding its reach in the greater Philadelphia area to address equitable and affordable homeownership.

“As a native of West Philadelphia, I am excited about AHCOPA opening this office to make our
housing services more accessible right here in the community where I grew up,” says Paul
Johnson, president of AHCOPA’s board. “Growing up in West Philly, I recall a sense of
homeownership and pride among my neighbors, which provided a sense of stability for families
and blocks. West Philly is uniquely positioned to benefit from our housing services to revitalize
this special community.”

Housing counselors are the city’s first responders for housing issues in Philadelphia. Housing counseling helps low to moderate income families and communities of color access the resources and information they need to successfully purchase a home. AHCOPA’s mission is to increase homeownership for Black and African American families, and as a result, increase generational wealth and decrease the racial wealth gap.

AHCOPA helps residents access down payment assistance grants, like the popular Philly First Home and NeighborhoodLIFT. A client who recently completed the AHCOPA’s First Time Homebuyer program reflects, “Housing counseling helped me a lot, I had no idea what I was doing, I didn’t have the basic language… now I’m a homeowner and it seems surreal. I come from a lower income background, from government housing, so owning a house never seemed possible, and it only became possible because of assistance.”

Similar to AHCOPA’s other office locations in Northeast Philadelphia, North Philadelphia, and, recently, Upper Darby, the new West Philadelphia site will provide critical housing counseling resources to keep families in their homes, and to help people of color and low to moderate income families purchase a home.

“While homeownership is the vehicle for most households to build wealth,” says AHCOPA’s Executive Director, Ken Bigos, “it is getting more difficult for Black and Brown households to take advantage of this opportunity. AHCOPA helps these households overcome barriers so that they may reap the benefits of stable homeownership. We are excited to make our services more accessible to West Philadelphia residents.”