Website: https://devnw.org/access-funds/individual-development-accounts/

Contact: Stephany Guzman, 503.779.2680 x2063, IDA@devnw.org (English and Spanish)

Communities served: DevNW as a whole serves Lane, Marion, Polk, Linn, Benton, Lincoln and Clackamas counties. Specifically, our IDA program is open to those whose primary residence is in Oregon, regardless of county.

Eligibility criteria: Must be a current DevNW member; complete a financial literacy course, either DevNW’s Financial Foundations classes or the self-paced course through the Oregon IDA Initiative; and at least one financial counseling session with one of DevNW’s Asset Building Specialists. It’s worth noting that we have an IDA applicant lottery in place for the majority of our clients seeking to apply for the IDA program. Those who bypass the lottery are savers from our Network Partners and Referral Partners, but they must complete the aforemention requirements as well. DevNW membership is $75/year per household and includes accesss to classes and one-on-one financial and homeownership counseling. See also “Am I Eligible?” for general eligibility requirements.

Application process: We have three buckets of applicants: 1) DevNW clients are chosen randomly from the lottery pool via a random number generator. The drawing is witnessed by two staff members and recorded and archived on Loom. These drawings happen every few months. The frequency of the drawings and the number of applicants drawn vary based on the current funding. 2) Referral candidates are chosen in an equitable and transparent manner by our Referral Partners and then e-introduced to our IDA team. From there, these potential applicants must complete all of the same eligibility requirements mentioned above but are allowed to bypass the lottery and go straight to the application stage. 3) Network Partner savers are given an opportunity to apply by participating in a specific program the Network Partner offers (ex. an FSS program). With these savers, DevNW acts as the fiscal agent.

Average number of IDAs opened each year, in the 3 most recent years: 100, across all 4 DevNW locations.

Maximum match per asset: $6,000

Other services provided: Through our partner organization, Community Lending Works, we offer credit builder loans, personal loans, vehicle purchase loans, and small business loans. Through DevNW, we have a myriad of financial education classes as well as home buying foundations classes. DevNW also has Down Payment Assistance programs and Community Land Trust homes (CLTs) up for sale.

Languages served: Spanish