The Housing Partnership Network (the Network) was one of eight award winners of a national business plan competition sponsored by the Partnership on Nonprofit Ventures, an initiative of the Yale School of Management and the Goldman Sachs Foundation (see accompanying press release). On Friday, June 10th, Housing Partnership Insurance was chosen from a pool of 464 entries from throughout the country for its high social impact and its ability to generate earned income for its nonprofit sponsor.

The Network launched Housing Partnership Insurance in April 2004 in response to the skyrocketing cost of property insurance for nonprofit affordable housing providers. Housing Partnership Insurance now insures nearly 35,000 affordable apartments nationwide owned by the 17 nonprofit organizations that helped create the company.

The Network received one of four cash awards of $25,000 for its business plan for Housing Partnership Insurance (business plan .pdf). Four other ventures received awards of $100,000. Winners also receive hundreds of hours of technical business planning consultations to assist their organizations in implementing the new ventures.

"We are thrilled to receive this recognition for our insurance venture," said Network president Tom Bledsoe. "By pooling risk and capital, and negotiating a custom program with national insurance carriers, Housing Partnership Insurance saved its partner organizations $1 million in its first year of operations. These savings have been reinvested by the nonprofits to build more sustainable communities for their lower income residents."