Complete Communities January 2021

Houston Financial Empowerment Celebrates First Anniversary

The Houston Financial Empowerment Center (HFEC) reached its one-year anniversary on January 9, 2021.

The HFEC is an initiative of the Mayor’s Office of Complete Communities and was created in an effort to replicate the successful Financial Empowerment Center model that was first piloted in New York City under Mayor Michael Bloomberg. It is primarily funded by the Cities for Financial Empowerment (CFE) Fund, Regions Bank and other partners.

The HFEC opened with two strategic locations, at the Acres Home Multi-Service Center and the Magnolia Park-Manchester Multi-Service Center to ensure equitable service in those Complete Communities. 

The HFEC provides completely free professional one-on-one financial counseling, coaching, and light case management to all Houston residents. It has partnered with the non-profit, the Alliance for Multicultural Community Services, which employs the financial counselors and manages daily operations. In May of 2020, Sandra Imery was appointed as the Financial Empowerment Center Program Manager in the Mayor’s Office of Complete Communities, strengthening the local government support for the nonprofit program.

The HFEC integrates light case management with other social services such as housing and foreclosure prevention, workforce development, prisoner re-entry and domestic violence. The HFEC partners with community stakeholders Baker Ripley, Houston Housing Authority, Lone Star College. The financial counselors assist clients with opening bank accounts, managing their money, increasing savings, establishing good credit and decreasing debt.

In 2020, the HFEC financial counselors have helped 430 Houstonians and have had over 1,600 client sessions, mostly by phone and virtual platforms, despite the pandemic. Of those clients, 86% have also been able to receive access to a public support program during COVID-19. The HFEC has helped its clients save about $130,000. 

Visit the Houston Financial Empowerment Center website to learn more.