Partnerships

Let’s make a difference, together.

Empowering Homeownership, Strengthening Communities

At the American Pledge Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, we believe homeownership is a cornerstone for building stable families, prosperous communities, and a stronger nation. Our mission is to help families achieve and sustain homeownership, even during life’s unexpected challenges.

AmPledge collaborates with banks, lenders, housing authorities, corporations, and local governments. We offer innovative, socially driven solutions that directly benefit borrowers and employees, helping our customers achieve affordable lending, workforce stability, and community development goals.

 Our Services

We provide two core services designed to promote homeownership and offer a financial safety net for those in need. Our bank and institutional customers pay a service fee for these solutions for their borrowers and employees, ensuring seamless implementation and measurable social impact:

  • A financial safety net for homeowners facing unexpected hardships during the first five years of homeownership.

    Program Details

    Our flagship 5-Year Hardship Assistance Program creates a financial safety net for homeowners during life’s toughest moments. AmPledge establishes a 5% (of the home sales price) hardship escrow fund to pay up to three mortgage payments for each qualifying hardship during the first five years of homeownership.

    Eligible hardships include:

    • Job loss

    • Major medical expenses

    • Critical home repairs

    • Death or divorce of a wage earner

    AmPledge makes mortgage payments on behalf of our members free of fees or costly compounding interest to help them stay in their homes during life’s hardships, preserving community stability and reducing delinquency and default risks for our lending customers. Customers pay a service fee for this turnkey solution.

  • Support for aspiring homeowners by covering down payments, making homeownership more accessible.

    Details
    Our Down Payment Assistance service helps corporations, institutions, and banks support eligible employees or borrowers by covering down payments. This service bridges the financial gap, making homeownership more attainable for many families.

    AmPledge customizes each DPA program to comply with all mortgage guidelines, ensuring regulatory compliance for corporate, institutional, and bank customers. Customers pay a service fee for a comprehensive, easy-to-implement solution.

How We Help Our Customers

We serve two distinct categories of customers:

Banks, Lenders, and Housing Authorities:

Our Hardship Assistance Program helps lenders mitigate delinquency and default risk in high LTV, higher-risk loan portfolios. By reducing loan performance risks, we enable these institutions to confidently serve more borrowers while meeting affordable housing and regulatory objectives.

Corporations and Local Governments:

Our Down Payment Assistance and Hardship Assistance Programs help organizations improve workforce stability and retention by offering a meaningful employee benefit. By reducing financial barriers to homeownership, these institutions can strengthen their communities and enhance employee well-being.

Our tailored approach ensures that every customer benefits from a streamlined, impactful solution designed to meet their specific needs.

The Pay-It-Forward Model

Creating a Cycle of Support

At the heart of AmPledge’s programs is our Pay-It-Forward model, which ensures that today’s support benefits future generations. For assistance received through the Hardship Assistance Program, homeowners agree to Pay-It-Forward (repay) the support they received only when they sell their homes—without any fees or costly compounding interest.

These repayments can either be returned to the bank or institution that served as the patron or reinvested into the hardship escrow fund to help more families. This sustainable approach fosters long-term community resilience.

Expanding the Mission

Patrons play a vital role in helping AmPledge support more homeowners and strengthen communities. They can contribute through direct financial cash donations or by pledging funds without immediate cash transfer.

For example, foundations with endowments can pledge invested funds, making them available only if needed during periods of higher-than-normal homeowner hardships. This approach allows patrons to retain control of their investments while offering crucial financial backing. Should cash be required, patrons can be repaid or recall their funds when AmPledge members sell their homes, providing flexibility and potential personal or tax benefits.

Who can be a patron?

  • Philanthropic foundations seeking to create lasting social impact

  • Bank and Corporations dedicated to investment in community development

  • Wealthy individuals who want to give back and invest in the future of American families

  • Government agencies offering grants to promote housing stability in the communities they serve

Patrons help ensure more families can achieve homeownership, build wealth, and create a stable future by supporting our hardship escrow account.

Our Stakeholders: Customers, Patrons, Members, and Supporters

AmPledge works with a diverse set of stakeholders, each playing a unique role in advancing our mission:

  • Customers: Banks, lenders, housing authorities, corporations, and local governments who pay a fee for our services.

  • Patrons: Philanthropic foundations, banks, corporations, individuals, and government agencies who donate or pledge funds to expand our reach.

  • Members: New homeowners who directly benefit from our Hardship Assistance and Down Payment Assistance programs.

  • Supporters: Realtors, attorneys, community leaders, and influencers who advocate for our mission and help spread awareness.

Together, we create pathways to homeownership, provide financial safety nets, and strengthen communities across the nation.

Join Us in Building Stronger Communities

Partnering with AmPledge means making a lasting difference. Whether you’re a bank seeking to support borrowers, a corporation looking to enhance employee benefits, or a donor eager to give back, there’s a place for you in our mission.

Together, we can empower families, strengthen communities, and ensure that every American has the opportunity to achieve the dream of homeownership.