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To determine if you qualify to be a HUD-approved counseling agency through RCAC

Rural Community Assistance Corporation (RCAC) is a National HUD Housing Counseling Intermediary with a network of counseling organizations serving clients throughout the Western United States. Major factors for selecting potential new organizations to join this network include, but are not limited to, your responses in this pre-application, the number of clients your organization serves each year, Housing Counseling program income currently generated for your program and, your organizations overall capacity.

As an Intermediary, RCAC strictly follows HUD’s Housing Counseling program rules and has the ability to make more stringent requirements in some cases. In addition, RCAC annually establishes goals (priorities) for the expansion of the Housing Counseling Program which may affect your organizations acceptance into the program. These goals currently include: 

1. One RCAC organization per state in RCAC’s service area. Those states without an RCAC organization are Alaska, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, North and South Dakota and the western Pacific islands. Organizations from these states would receive top priority. 
2. Two RCAC organizations per state. Second priority would go to organizations in Colorado, Hawaii, Montana, Washington, Wyoming or organizations serving Native communities.
3. Tribes or organizations serving Native communities receive priority.

RCAC further gives first priority to existing sub-grantee’s reapplying. Organizations seeking new acceptance into RCAC affiliation must complete and receive approval through the pre-application process prior to the deadline identified below.

Some basic RCAC eligibility criteria include, but are not limited to:

• You must have an established Housing Counseling Program with at least one year experience serving a minimum of 50 one-on-one rural clients
• Your organization must have funding available to operate your Housing Counseling Program for at least one year without HUD Housing Counseling funds
•  You must be able to show capacity to administer a Housing Counseling Program

What are the benefits of becoming an RCAC Housing Counseling sub-grantee?

• Assist your community with many Housing Counseling services, chosen by your organization to fit your mission and the needs of your clients. Eligible forms of counseling include:

1. Homebuyer education
2. Foreclosure counseling
3. Credit repair / Predatory lending
4. Pre-purchase counseling
5. Rental counseling
6. Homeless counseling

• HUD Housing Counseling grant funding passed through RCAC
• Conditional approval as a HUD Housing Counseling Agency through RCAC’s affiliation  
• NeighborWorks Training scholarships, place-based training opportunities as available
• Affiliation with a network of housing counseling agencies throughout the rural Western United States
• Assistance with program compliance, designing forms, program updates
• Annual network meetings, and much more

If you would like to be considered, please complete the attached application (checklist included). 

Please note that RCAC do not provide funding directly to counseling clients.