<div align="left"><font size="2" face="Tahoma"> DC organization CityFirst receives $500,000 grant recognizing its program as one of the most promising models in the country for returning foreclosed properties to productive use.</font></div>

<div align="left"> <pre class="release"><font size="2" face="Tahoma">WASHINGTON, June 24 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Foreclosures, like the<br />subprime lending that precipitated them, have been heavily concentrated in<br />vulnerable neighborhoods. The resulting vacant and abandoned properties<br />threaten values of neighboring homeowners, invite crime, and discourage<br />further investment.<br /><br />In response, Living Cities, a collaborative of major philanthropies and<br />financial institutions, has announced the awarding of its first round of<br />grants, $3,750,000, to support innovative, locally driven responses to<br />combat the crisis.<br /><br />As part of this multi-city pilot, Washington, DC area non-profit<br />housing developer CityFirst Enterprises will receive a $500,000 grant to be<br />used for the purchase, rehabilitation, and sale of foreclosed homes to<br />working families.<br /><br />&quot;Affordable housing is so critical to building great neighborhoods<br />across the District,&quot; said Mayor Adrian M. Fenty. &quot;Working together - the<br />government, the non profit community and the private sector - we need to do<br />everything we can to make sure that foreclosures do not destabilize our<br />communities and that real investment continues to flow to all corners of<br />our city. CityFirst and Living Cities should be applauded for their forward<br />thinking and action.&quot;<br /><br />City First Enterprises will also have access to an unprecedented $10<br />million commitment from the District of Columbia to help create 1,000 units<br />of permanently affordable housing for working families within three years.<br /><br />&quot;Woefully underrepresented in the subprime discussion are the voices of<br />millions of hard working families whose home values have plummeted by $200<br />billion simply because they live on blocks with clusters of foreclosed<br />homes. We expect our support to help build scalable models that will serve<br />as blueprints for communities around the country when and if federal aid<br />for such activities is made available,&quot; says Ben Hecht, President and CEO<br />of Living Cities.<br /><br />The grants will go to models being built in strong, moderate and weak<br />housing markets, using mechanisms as diverse as New Market Tax Credits,<br />land trusts, and non-profit real estate brokers. In addition to grant<br />funds, Living Cities will be considering requests from these grantees for<br />up to $5 million in patient capital in the form of long-term, low-interest<br />rate loans from its Catalyst Fund, a new pool of funds provided through<br />program related investments from Living Cities' members. Decisions on these<br />loans will be made later this summer.<br /><br />About Living Cities<br />Living Cities is the most enduring philanthropic and private sector<br />collaborative in the world, with investments in America's cities totaling a<br />half billion dollars over the past 15 years, leveraging over 15 billion<br />dollars to revitalize Urban America. Living Cities supports bold, promising<br />approaches that take advantage of cities' unique roles in America's<br />economic prosperity and that have the potential to transform the lives of<br />low-income people and the communities in which they live. For more<br />information, please visit: <a target="_new" href="http://www.livingcities.org/">http://www.livingcities.org</a>.<br /><br />Living Cities members include: AXA Community Investment Program, Bank<br />of America, The Annie E. Casey Foundation, J.P. Morgan Chase &amp; Company,<br />Deutsche Bank, Ford Foundation, Bill &amp; Melinda Gates Foundation, Robert<br />Wood Johnson Foundation, The Kresge Foundation, John S. and James L. Knight<br />Foundation, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, The McKnight<br />Foundation, MetLife, Inc., Prudential Financial, The Rockefeller<br />Foundation, Surdna Foundation, US Department of Housing &amp; Urban<br />Development. Affiliate Member: The Cleveland Foundation.<br /><br />CONTACT: Eric Henderson of Living Cities, +1-646-442-2200,<br />ehenderson@livingcities.org</font></pre> </div>