How the City of Long Beach Expanded Pathways to Homeownership for First-Generation Buyers

A Scalable, Equity-Centered Approach to Local Housing Stability

The City of Long Beach, CA partnered with FORWARD to design and administer a streamlined First-Time Homebuyer Program that helped 76 low- and moderate-income households purchase their first home.

This model demonstrates how local governments can deliver complex housing programs with greater equity, accountability, and operational efficiency, while reducing staff burden and improving coordination across applicants, lenders, and escrow partners.

“Thank you for your support! With your help, and the help of the program, we were able to help this amazing family buy a home with only $8k out of pocket!  Thank you!

Long Beach First-Time Homebuyer Program Awardee

The Challenge: Delivering Homebuyer Assistance at Scale with Limited Staff Capacity

Like many cities, Long Beach wanted to expand homeownership, particularly for first-generation buyers facing structural barriers in traditional lending and wealth-building. But several obstacles stood in the way:

• Fragmented systems made it difficult to run a fair, timely program

  Manual spreadsheets and outdated tools slowed income verification, document review, and applicant tracking, resulting in delays that affected both residents and lenders.

  
  

• Equity gaps limited access for the communities who needed support most

  Residents needed a mobile-friendly, multilingual application process and clear communication at every step to remain engaged and informed.

  
  

• Staff workloads made it difficult to keep the program moving

  Coordinating between applicants, lenders, escrow officers, and internal teams required significant time, especially for a high-volume program with tight HUD/CDBG compliance requirements.

  
  

• Lender coordination lacked structure

  Without a centralized workflow, verifying loan approvals, monitoring escrow milestones, and preparing for funding disbursement required extensive back-and-forth, slowing progress for eligible households.

What Long Beach Needed

City leaders were looking for a partner who could help them:

• Ensure fairness and compliance across all applications

• Provide timely, consistent communication with residents and lenders

• Reduce administrative load so staff could stay focused on strategy

• Support first-generation buyers with an accessible, user-friendly process

• Deliver a program that was visible, data-backed, and accountable to community and funders

The Approach: End-to-End Program Design and Management

Long Beach selected FORWARD to design, administer, and manage the entire program from end to end, from application creation to final reporting. This included:

• Designing the intake and eligibility structure

• Building multilingual, mobile-friendly applications

• Managing applicant communications

• Reviewing documentation

• Coordinating directly with lenders and escrow teams

• Managing payments and compliance steps

• Preparing real-time dashboards and HUD/CDBG-ready reports

This fully managed model allowed Long Beach to offer a high-quality experience to residents, maintain compliance, and expand access to homeownership without adding internal administrative burden.

Together, the City and FORWARD implemented a two-phase structure to manage eligibility, coordinate with lenders, verify purchases, and ensure compliant fund distribution.

Phase 1: Intake & Eligibility Screening

The City received hundreds of applications, representing all nine council districts.

Key equity outcomes included:

• Strong participation from historically underserved neighborhoods

• Standardized review ensured every applicant was evaluated consistently and fairly

Automated reminders, clear status updates, and multilingual support helped maintain engagement and reduce avoidable denials.

Phase 2: Home Purchase Verification, Lender Coordination & Funding Distribution

Of the Phase Two applicants:

• 85% completed a home purchase, exceptionally high for public-sector homeownership programs

• The majority purchased condos, reflecting local market realities

A major component of the program’s success was structured lender coordination:

Coordinating with lenders to keep transactions moving

FORWARD provided the operational backbone that allowed lenders and escrow teams to work seamlessly with the City by:

• Verifying mortgage approvals and loan estimates

• Evaluating purchase agreements and closing disclosures

• Tracking escrow milestones and addressing delays early

• Ensuring assistance funds could be released on time and in compliance

• Updating applicants at every stage to maintain clarity and engagement

This consistent, reliable coordination helped remove friction for both residents and lenders, reducing uncertainty and accelerating closings for eligible buyers.

What the City Achieved

First-Time Homebuyers Built a Foundation for Long-Term Wealth

City assistance, ranging from $20,000 to $25,000, helped residents overcome down payment and closing cost barriers that historically prevented many working families from entering the housing market.

90% of Program Funds Reached the Community

The City distributed $1.8 million to residents, maximizing available resources and demonstrating efficient stewardship of public dollars.

A Dramatic Reduction in Administrative Burden

By centralizing intake, document review, lender coordination, and reporting, Long Beach avoided hundreds of hours of manual work.

This enabled the team to spend more time supporting residents and shaping policy and less time tracking paperwork.

Stronger Equity Outcomes

• Most participants were first-generation homebuyers

• Applicants represented every council district

• Technology helped close access gaps for residents without consistent internet access or prior experience navigating government programs

Clear, Actionable Insights for Future Housing Policy

Real-time dashboards and program closeout data gave Long Beach a deeper understanding of:

• Demand across neighborhoods

• Barriers impacting applicant drop-off

• Typical purchase timelines and lender needs

• Program elements that should be expanded or replicated

This created a data-backed roadmap for future homeownership and housing stability initiatives.

Why This Model Works for Cities and Counties

Long Beach’s program illustrates a scalable, high-impact approach that other local governments can adopt:

• Equity-first design that meets residents where they are

  Multilingual, mobile-friendly applications help broaden access to homeownership opportunities.

  
  

• Structured coordination with lenders and escrow partners

  Cities can keep complex housing transactions on track without expanding internal staff.

  
  

• Clear, transparent accountability

  Real-time dashboards and compliant documentation support leadership, funders, and auditors.

  
  

• Operational efficiency without compromising accuracy

  Automating routine steps allows staff to focus on strategy and community engagement.

  
  

• A replicable two-phase structure

  This approach reduces risk, increases clarity, and ensures that assistance funds go to households ready to purchase.

Stay Ahead With the Latest Program Management Insights

Want more strategies, case studies, and solutions to improve your programs? Join a growing network of leaders optimizing service delivery and driving impact.

Let's Chat