First Anniversary of $1 Million Donation of Homes for Hurricane Evacuees Celebrated by Local Non-Profit

HOUSTON, Dec. 14 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- In the year after Hurricane Katrina forced them to evacuate their New Orleans home, 12-year-old Rashad Scott and his family moved five times. This year, they will spend Christmas in a stable housing situation, thanks to Avenue CDC and The PMI Group, Inc. .

"Spending last Christmas moving around all the time just wasn't the same," Rashad said. "At least this Christmas we will feel more settled in."

As part of a $2 million disaster relief package, PMI donated more than $1 million worth of homes to Avenue CDC, a Houston-based non-profit group that promotes affordable housing. The donation made eight homes available for rent at below-market rates to hurricane evacuees, and was the largest private sector donation the non-profit has ever received.

Avenue CDC and PMI will join the Scott family today to celebrate the one- year anniversary of the donation. Avenue CDC will donate a Christmas tree and decorations to the Scott family, who lost all of their possessions in the hurricane.

"After losing our home and everything we had in New Orleans, we can't describe how much it means to us to finally have a place to call home," said Lena Scott, mother of Rashad and 18-year-old Rudy.

The Scotts now live in a four-bedroom, three-and-a-half-bath home in Houston's Wood Creek neighborhood, and Rashad and Rudy have their own rooms.

The discounted rent was particularly important for the Scott family, who now survive on only one income.

"A house like this in this neighborhood would normally rent for nearly twice the price we pay," Lena said.

Lena's husband, Rudolf, works as an engineer in Houston, a position to which his employer was able to transfer him after the hurricane. Lena had worked in New Orleans as a car saleswoman and has not been able to find employment since relocating to Houston.

"The PMI Group demonstrated tremendous compassion and generosity in making these homes available to evacuees," said Mary Lawler, Executive Director of Avenue CDC. "Avenue CDC is very pleased to be able to help the Scotts and the other families who have benefited from this donation."

"PMI is happy to be able to help families start to rebuild their lives after suffering terrible loss and personal tragedy," said Rosy Davalos, Director of Expanding Markets at PMI. "We have supported Avenue CDC's affordable housing programs since 2001, and the Scott family is a great example of how these programs promote family stability and community development."

Having a home has helped the Scott family establish a return to normalcy. Lena says she is most proud of her son Rudy, who graduated this past May from Brakenridge High School in San Antonio after being separated from his class at the New Orleans high school he attended prior to the hurricane.

About Avenue CDC

Avenue CDC was founded in 1991 to help develop affordable housing, preserve historic buildings and revitalize the Old Sixth Ward, a National Register Historic District in the shadow of downtown Houston. Community revitalization efforts are a large part of Avenue CDC's mission as a chartered member of the nationwide NeighborWorks(R) Network, which is made up of more than 235 organizations that engage in revitalization strategies that strengthen communities and transform lives across the country. For additional information on Avenue CDC, visit http://www.avenuecdc.org/ . For more information on NeighborWorks(R) America, visit http://www.nw.org/ .

About The PMI Group, Inc.

The PMI Group, Inc., headquartered in Walnut Creek, CA, provides innovative credit, capital, and risk transfer solutions that expand homeownership and fund essential services for our customers and the communities they serve around the world. Through its wholly and partially owned subsidiaries, PMI offers residential mortgage insurance and credit enhancement products, financial guaranty insurance, and financial guaranty reinsurance. PMI has operations in Asia, Australia and New Zealand, Europe, and the United States. For more information: http://www.pmigroup.com/ .