Bank of America Announces $100 Million Community Development Effort to Rebuild After Hurricanes Katrina and Rita

Bank of America today announced a

$100 million Community Development Banking goal to rebuild affordable housing

and revitalize neighborhoods in Gulf Coast areas devastated by Hurricanes

Katrina and Rita. The bank will target loans and investments to address the

need for affordable housing in the areas affected by the storm.

In addition, through its community development corporation, Bank of

America has made more than 200 apartments it owns available to house displaced

families in Georgia, Florida, Tennessee and Texas. The bank is providing the

units to make it easier for families in transition and is working to make

additional units available as housing needs continue.

"As a leader in community development, Bank of America understands the

far-reaching impact of the loss of so many homes in low- and moderate-income

neighborhoods," said Phyllis Caldwell, president, Bank of America Community

Development Banking. "For those displaced by the hurricanes, now more than

ever, an affordable home will be a key step to reaching financial

self-sufficiency and rebuilding their lives."

Under the $100 million Community Development Banking initiative, Bank of

America expects to make available $60 million in loans for new construction

and redevelopment of affordable housing in the region. The bank also has set

a goal of at least $40 million for affordable housing development and

community revitalization through tax credit investments, and will look for

further opportunities through partnerships with strategic nonprofit funds such

as the Enterprise Social Investment Corporation and the National Equity Fund.

The announcements are part of Bank of America's strategy to meet near-term

needs for immediate relief, interim needs for transitional housing and long-

term needs for rebuilding communities.

More long term, and in addition to the $100 million community development

initiative announced today, the bank will work with public housing authorities

and state and local agencies to develop innovative financing programs to help

rebuild communities in the affected areas.

"Leadership in community development often means organizations and people

must do things in different ways or rise to meet unexpected challenges,"

Caldwell said. "Although historically we have not targeted our community

development efforts outside our 29-state retail footprint, we are glad we can

bring our community development lending and investment tools to the hurricane-

stricken region."

A national leader in community development among financial institutions,

Bank of America last year provided more than $57 billion in loans and

investments for affordable housing and affordable home ownership, small

business development, consumer loans for low- and moderate-income borrowers

and economic development.

Hurricane Relief Charitable Donation Update

Bank of America also announced that donations from the company and its

associates to aid victims of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita have now exceeded

$4.8 million.

The Bank of America Charitable Foundation has given more than $1.4 million

in corporate donations to aid the American Red Cross and other organizations

providing relief to survivors. In addition, Bank of America associates have

donated more than $1.7 million that is being matched dollar-for-dollar by the

Charitable Foundation.

Bank of America

Bank of America is one of the world's largest financial institutions,

serving individual consumers, small and middle market businesses and large

corporations with a full range of banking, investing, asset management and

other financial and risk-management products and services. The company

provides unmatched convenience in the United States, serving 33 million

consumer relationships with more than 5,800 retail banking offices, more than

16,600 ATMs and award-winning online banking with more than 13 million active

users. Bank of America is the No. 1 overall Small Business Administration

(SBA) lender in the United States and the No. 1 SBA lender to minority-owned

small businesses. The company serves clients in 150 countries and has

relationships with 98 percent of the U.S. Fortune 500 companies and 85 percent

of the Global Fortune 500. Bank of America Corporation stock (NYSE: BAC) is

listed on the New York Stock Exchange.

What are people saying about mortgages today:

Rates on 30-year mortgages edged down last week to a seven-month low. Mortgage-giant Freddie Mac reported Thursday that 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages fell to 6.3 percent, down slightly from 6.31 percent two weeks ago. It put rates at the lowest level since they were at 6.24 percent the first week of March.

Bank of Hawaii, Central Pacific Bank, Territorial Savings Bank and Wells Fargo Home Mortgages all cut their 30-year mortgage rates to 5.75 percent this week.

Most people think of a mortgage as a means to an end. After all, you buy a house, not a home loan. But a mortgage is much more than the path to homeownership. It is a financial instrument that must be managed, just like any other financial investment.