Wachovia, a Wells Fargo Company, Sponsors Macon Habitat’s First Rehab Build

Harold Tessendorf, Executive Director announced today that Macon Area Habitat for Humanity will partner with Wachovia on the construction of its 17th home in Lynmore Estates. A significant donation of $35,000 provided by the Wells Fargo Housing Foundation will go toward the rehabilitation and transformation of an existing duplex home into a single family residence. Macon Area Habitat for Humanity Habitat’s first rehab house in Lynmore Estates is part of its forty-six home build program scheduled to be completed in 2012. Construction will begin September 12th and is projected to be completed during early winter, 2010.

On Wednesday, September 9th at 12 noon Wachovia and HomeFirst Housing Resource Services Inc. employees along with Macon Habitat for Humanity Board members, In-Kind donors and Macon area community leaders will come together at 4137 San Carlos Drive to celebrate this innovative project. “Here a sponsorship donation check will be presented to Macon Habitat by Scott Sapp, Wachovia Market President, launching the construction of this first rehab home and the formalization of this wonderful partnership,” Tessendorf added.

Since 1986, Macon Area Habitat for Humanity has constructed seventy-two new homes in Bibb and Jones Counties. In 2005 the Macon Area Habitat Board of Directors established the Lynmore Estates Neighborhood Revitalization Project with the goal of restoring a once thriving WW II neighborhood established in 1945 by veterans of the Second World War.

“The contribution from Wells Fargo Housing Foundation combined with our Wachovia volunteers is making this possible and shows the power of bringing Wachovia and Wells Fargo together," said Sapp. "It demonstrates that this merger will take our commitment to Macon and our working relationship with community leaders like Habitat for Humanity to a new level.”

Both Wachovia and Wells Fargo have a long-standing commitment to the community. Because of the merger, Wachovia is able to leverage Wells Fargo’s Team Member Volunteer Program, an initiative through the Wells Fargo Housing Foundation that provides a combination of team member volunteer hours and grants to organizations that promote homeownership, such as Habitat for Humanity.

“We are pleased to come together as a team and work alongside Habitat for Humanity to make a difference in the Macon area,” said Sapp.

“HomeFirst Housing Resource Services Inc. is proud to be a part of the latest endeavor, providing education and financial assistance to a family in Lynmore Estates” said Reginald Bell, Executive Director of HomeFirst Housing Resource Services Inc.

About Wells Fargo and Wachovia
Wells Fargo & Company is a diversified financial services company with $1.3 trillion in assets, providing banking, insurance, investments, mortgage and consumer finance through more than 10,000 stores and 12,000 ATMs and the internet (wellsfargo.com) across North America and internationally. Wachovia merged with Wells Fargo in December of 2008 and is now operating as Wachovia, A Wells Fargo Company.

In Georgia, Wells Fargo and Wachovia have 6,700 employees and serve customers at 328 locations including 279 Wachovia bank stores.

About Wells Fargo Housing Foundation
The Wells Fargo Housing Foundation was created to provide permanent solutions to homeownership needs in Wells Fargo communities nationwide. Through the volunteerism of Wells Fargo team members, more than 3,000 homes have been built or renovated through the foundation since its inception in 1993. The foundation is funded by Wells Fargo Home Mortgage, which is one of the nation's leading retail mortgage lenders and services one of every six mortgage loans in the nation. It has a national presence in mortgage stores and banking stores, and also serves the home financing needs of customers nationwide through its call centers, Internet presence and third-party production channels.

HomeFirst, Wachovia and Habitat for Humanity Working Together …
HomeFirst Housing Resource Services, Inc., Habitat for Humanity and Wachovia have
partnered to provide housing opportunities for low-to-moderate income families. HomeFirst Housing Resource Services, Inc. is a not-for-profit HUD-certified counseling agency dedicated to providing its clients with information, resources and support for all aspects of housing and homeownership.

The Dream Savers IDA Program sponsored by HomeFirst Housing Resource Services, Inc. and Wachovia was developed to help low-to-moderate income families make the transition to homeownership. The savings program matches each dollar saved by the family with a dollar from the program. The funds are used to assist with down payment or closing cost. Since the inception of the program, HomeFirst Housing Resource Services, Inc. and Wachovia have helped three Habitat families make the dream of homeownership a reality.

For more information regarding how a family can make application for a Habitat home in Lynmore Estates, visit www.maconhabitat.org .