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In addition, before the economy hit the brakes, Bremer was having trouble finding enough qualified employees. Dardis expects an economic recovery in which employers again will be competing for workers. "You look for ways to become the employer of choice ...ways to differentiate yourself. Steve and his management team took that discussion and came back to us with this approach." Patricia Rossez, Bremer's vice president for community development, said the company is enthusiastic about the initial response by employees, although the number of inquiries wasn't tallied. Bremer Financial has 1,800 employees in three states. The program is focused in the Twin Cities metro area, where about 600 employees work, and Dardis estimated that half would meet Brewer's eligibility criteria. Although participating employees can obtain mortgage loans wherever they want, Dardis threw in an additional inducement: Bremer will waive the origination fee for its workers fmancing with the bank. The area's usual origination fee fora 30-year loan at market rate with no points is 1 percent of the loan amount, so a Bremer employee borrowing $120,000 would save $1,200. Dardis said Brewer's REAL/I-iELP loans would be at market rate.Bremer will put a lien on the house to protect the bank from an employee quitting and refusing to repay the remaining balance, he said. To be eligible for Brewer's REAL/ HELP plan, an employee must be older than 18 and employed by Bremer for at least six months; have total household income of less than $60,240 in the nine-county Twin Cities area, or less than $41,360 if the home is in Kanabec or Mille Lacs counties; be regularly scheduled to work 20 hours a week or more, and not have received a REAL or HELP loan for the same type of housing previously. For HELP loans, employees must be first-time buyers or not have owned a home in the past 36 months. Hoping for others Leaders of participating organizations hope that other businesses will see the benefit of replicating the program launched by Bremer. "I think the potential is quite good," Fannie Mae's Thompson said. "I think that employers are learning that they have to offer a lot of different benefits and opportunities." She said some Minnesota cities still have a shortage of workers and "are intrigued by the idea ofemployer-assisted housing."She said Fannie Mae's employer-assisted housing director will be in Minnesota next month to provide seminars in Mankato and the Twin Cities. Colville said United Way has a relationship with about 2,000 businesses, and "we want to offer them this template." The program Bremer developed with United Way can "engage companies in a discussion of how affordable housing is a community issue they need to be talking about." He said he had no idea what the level of acceptance might be, although he expects "limited initial response just become of the economy." The REAL/HELP model also might be a way to deal with the problem of workers living far from their jobs, helping "people get where they need to be instead of where they have to be," he said.Dardis said that nationally, only 3 to 4 percent of employees eligible for such programs use them. He attributed the low number to lack of awareness and some negative connotations. "When you start talking about affordable housing, people ask, 'Isn't that like welfare?' "But even college graduates -- including his own children -- have trouble finding housing they can afford, he said. "There are so many families that are faced with this phenomenon of constantly rising house prices but incomes that don't keep up." He said Brewer's program is available to all eligible employees, and the money can be used for improving the property as well as for a down payment. What Bremer gets is the employee's service for five years and the ability "to demonstrate commitment to affordable housing and to being part of the solution." "We think we have something of real substance for our employees. And United Way is excited about it because they think they've got a way to leverage with other employers and say, 'We'll work with you.' I just • think it's awin-win for everyone." ###