History
HISTORY
The Home Buyers Round Table of Dane County, Inc. (affectionately known as The Round Table) was formed in December 1997. Peg Thomas with UW Extension, organized the first meeting to brainstorm barriers facing first-time home buyers in Dane County. Consumers’ lack of knowledge regarding the home buying process and lenders’ lack of knowledge regarding down payment assistance programs were two main barriers.
To combat these issues several actions were taken: the “First Time Home Buyer Checklist” was created, Dane County Housing Authority (DCHA) expanded into home ownership counseling services and the first Home Buyer’s Fair was held Saturday, May 1, 1999 at what is now the Alliant Energy Center with over 1,000 potential homebuyers. On Sunday May 2nd the Realtors Association and The Round Table held numerous “Affordable Homes” open houses for the public. These were also well attended.
In December 1999, our Mission Statement was adopted:
“The Home Buyer’s Round Table of Dane County is a collaboration of housing industry representatives that promote homeownership through education and counseling to low and moderate income families. We believe homeownership will increase family stability and financial security; stabilize and strengthen communities and neighborhoods; and generate jobs and stimulate economic growth.”
In 2000, we officially became “Home Buyer’s Round Table of Dane County, Inc.” and installed our first Board of Directors. The presidents of the Round Table have been: Deb Neubauer (now of UW Extension/Financial Education Center), Tom Conrad (City of Madison/DCHA), Marianne Morton (Common Wealth Development Corp.); Ken Jones (Keller Williams/Prudential Realty); Christine Haroldson (Summit Credit Union) and Terri Goldbin (City of Madison, Economic Development Division). We owe much thanks to each for their time, effort and leadership.
With the assistance and the wonderful generosity of Attorney Pharris Horton, in 2002 we received IRS approval of our 501(c) (3) status.
To educate lenders about down payment programs and other issues, we organized our first Round Table Lender Training in January 2004. In 2006 we held Lender Training in conjunction with Wisconsin Mortgage Bankers Association and have continued this training ever since. The last several years this training has been held in February, which guarantees that the date we select will attract huge winter snow storms.
We have continually expanded our offerings. At 2005 Fair, there were 4 Spanish, 2 Hmong, and 2 sign language interpreters. At the 2006 Fair, we started having a Spanish track of the home buyer educational courses.
We have always been willing to try new approaches. When both the 2006 and the 2007 Fairs experienced declining attendance, we experimented with holding two smaller Fairs in 2008– one at the Villager Mall and the other at American Family. This model did not attract additional attendance – in fact it decreased so much that in March 2010 we went back to our previous model and held one fair at the Alliant Energy Center. This year’s fair was very well attended with over 500 attendees, 50 exhibitors and 20 breakout education sessions.
The Round Table has also supported new homeowners with down payment assistance grants. Between 1999-2010, we paid out over $28,000.
Over the years The Round Table has been committed to both providing solid education to home buyers and to lenders. In addition, The Round Table has partnered with other organizations and events including:
-Financial Literacy session with WI Dept. of Workforce Development
-The Money Conference
-A Home For Everyone Conference
-MoneySmart Week
-Realtor Blitz
The Round Table remains committed to educating consumers about the home buying process and training lenders regarding down payment assistance and other topics. We are glad you are joining us in that commitment.