There are eight obstacles blocking ANHS' course towards the Practical Vision. The obstacles ANHS Board and staff must contend with are:

The Practical Vision points ANHS in several directions that it currently does not have the funding to accomplish. State or federal governments no longer offer programs that directly fund incentives for owners of rental properties, as did the Rental Rehabilitation Program. Similarly, ANHS has only limited pots of money to fund the community pride and education programs that now focus so prominently in the Practical Vision.

In order to avoid using valuable revolving loan pool funds for the practical vision, ANHS needs to aggressively pursue grants and contributions. However, current staffing levels and skills do not match with the resources needed to conduct a concerted grant and fundraising effort.

What is in it for me?

ANHS cannot achieve its Practical Vision without the assistance of a larger volunteer base, especially for special projects. Currently, though, the existing volunteer base is neither big enough nor distributed throughout the county. The challenges ANHS face is creating and maintaining an active recruitment program and convincing people why volunteering is good for them and their neighborhoods. Although ANHS is no stranger to volunteer development, the staff needs to build more expertise and commit more time to bring those volunteers into the organization.

Need Better & More Marketing Resources

Part of doing business successfully is making the public aware that you are there to serve their needs. Despite the excellent job ANHS does in housing program delivery, marketing is not their field of expertise. ANHS struggles with name recognition and it lacks the marketing resources necessary for countering this problem. Some say that even the name gives people the false impression that ANHS operates only within Aberdeen. ANHS is in need of professional marketing assistance as well as the dollars for funding a first-rate marketing program.

Finding a Common Denominator

What is that magic something that would make everyone participate in and contribute to ANHS? How do we overcome the negative attitudes prevalent in our communities that stifle individual motivation at improving housing in Grays Harbor County? So far, ANHS has yet to find that elusive universal verve that draws people to this organization and its cause.

Not Enough Staff, Time, Expenses, and Space

Going countywide with the CDBG-funded housing rehabilitation, down payment assistance, and counseling programs is probably the biggest step ANHS has taken since its founding. Although this is a great move for both the organization and the county, it is not without its complications and risks. A successful countywide expansion demands having more of the essential resources required for program delivery - none of which is in place at this time. The staff is concerned that moving forward with the service expansion at present staffing and resource levels could dilute all ANHS efforts and affect consistent service delivery. Furthermore, ANHS staff estimates they will need additional office space, both at their headquarters and in other cities of the county. In addition, bringing on more personnel also creates other time commitments, such as new staff training, accountability, and project control.

Need to Streamline the Loan Process

The success of the Practical Vision depends on a much sleeker and efficient ANHS that does more with only a marginal increase in resources. The Board's desire to make more loans on a wider geographic basis necessitates finding a new way for managing and expediting the loan approval process. As a result, the loan process, as well as all service delivery processes, need to become more efficient than ever before to reduce expenses and travel time between the main office and consumers as far off as forty miles away.

We Need More Staff, Resources to do Education

Taking on the task of providing community education means spending more staff time on designing and delivering curriculums. Providing classes will require additional night and weekend meetings for staff, too. This will complicate staff scheduling. Furthermore, providing community education does not directly generate income or fully pay for staff expenses.

Family Issues

While the staff is excited about the opportunities that expansion will bring to ANHS, there is no doubt that tensions brought on by the change will happen. The biggest problems looming over the staff deal with communication and respecting each other's job.