HARRISBURG, PA – March 13, 2015 – (RealEstateRama) — Housing professionals statewide, and journalists who cover housing, may now register for the May 7-8 Housing Forum to be held in Harrisburg. The Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency has been leading the Housing Forum biennially since 1997.
The Housing Forum provides an opportunity for people working in the housing field to attend focused educational sessions and interact with their peers. More than 600 people are expected to attend, including developers, bankers, housing advocates, lawyers and government officials.
“Our Housing Forum provides a tremendous opportunity for PHFA to promote a dialog on key housing issues in Pennsylvania through this educational event,” explains PHFA’s Executive Director and CEO Brian A. Hudson Sr. “The exchange of information and ideas that occurs is dynamic and stimulates creative solutions and stronger housing leadership that, in my opinion, would not have happen without this event.”
The 2015 Forum offers several new features drawing on feedback from previous conferences:
- 36 educational sessions – the most ever
- More educational sessions covering the latest housing research on issues including rental housing costs, rural housing, and the effectiveness of land banks in Pennsylvania
- Four keynote speakers, including well-known economist Elliot Eisenberg, Ph.D., and housing policy expert Barry Zigas
- Harrisburg Mayor Eric Papenfuse and York Mayor C. Kim Bracey will speak about the housing and economic development initiatives in their cities
- A walking tour of a Harrisburg multifamily housing development that recently completed energy efficiency upgrades
- Continuing education credits for mortgage bankers and Realtors® offered through sessions running concurrently with the Forum’s schedule
Educational sessions offered during the Forum will cover a wide variety of issues including rental housing, homeownership, foreclosure prevention, tax credits, housing for veterans, fair housing, housing services, and, of course, case studies profiling housing challenges and successes in various Pennsylvania communities.
The Forum retains popular features from past years including a networking event, vendor exhibit hall, and awards for Pennsylvania housing leaders.
Early bird pricing for the Housing Forum is only $125 through April 3. After that date, registration increases to $175. This is the same registration cost PHFA has offered for the past six years, while still adding enhancements to the event.
Detailed information about the 2015 Housing Forum, and registration, is available on the Web at http://housingforum.phfa.org. People with questions not answered by the information on the website should contact conference organizer Susan Shermer at 
EDITOR’S NOTE: Reporters and editors who cover housing issues are being offered free registration to attend the Housing Forum. Please contact Scott Elliott for a special press code to register.
About PHFA
The Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency works to provide affordable homeownership and rental housing options for older adults, low- and moderate-income families, and people with special housing needs. Through its carefully managed mortgage programs and investments in multifamily housing developments, PHFA also promotes economic development across the state. Since its creation by the legislature in 1972, it has generated nearly $11.9 billion of funding for more than 158,130 single-family home mortgage loans, helped fund the construction of 122,590 rental units, and saved the homes of more than 47,900 families from foreclosure. PHFA programs and operations are funded primarily by the sale of securities and from fees paid by program users, not by public tax dollars. The agency is governed by a 14-member board.
Contact:
Scott Elliott
717-780-3916 (office)
717-649-6522 (cell)
