For 17 years, Kelly Nossiter has been at the heart of MHO’s mission to expand homeownership opportunities across western North Carolina. Since joining MHO in 2008, she has helped more than 300 families achieve the dream of buying their first home and has played a key role in transforming MHO’s Downpayment Assistance (DPA) program into the vital resource it is today.
Homeownership Impact
During her tenure at MHO, Kelly closed over 300 loans, providing more than $4 million in direct down payment assistance through the MHO Loan Fund. When combined with NCHFA’s Community Partners Loan Pool funds and other resources she helped secure, the total impact exceeds $5 million in support delivered to local families. And those numbers don’t even include the many people she helped achieve homeownership during her four years at Neighborhood Housing Services before joining MHO.
But for Kelly, it was about the families behind them. Thanks to her commitment, countless renters became stable homeowners, laying the foundation for generational wealth and stronger, more resilient communities. The MHO Loan Fund’s foreclosure rate remains well below national and regional averages, proving that down payment assistance provides a catalytic impact to low-income families who gain financial stability through homeownership. Kelly helped her clients turn that stability into something lasting, sending children to college, launching small businesses, and creating a legacy of financial security for generations to come.
Finding Solutions
Kelly has always been known for finding creative ways to meet a need. When she recognized that homebuyers inside Asheville city limits needed extra help, she requested and obtained CDBG funding to offer an additional $40,000-$50,000 for those purchases. As housing costs began to climb, she worked to layer funding sources from multiple partners to close affordability gaps and keep homeownership within reach.
In 2024, when the opportunity arose to apply for the largest Women for Women grant ever awarded, $125,000, Kelly helped make it happen, assisting five women-headed households achieve the dream of transitioning from renting to homeownership.
Kelly’s leadership shaped what the MHO Loan Fund is today. She developed MHO’s shared-appreciation down payment assistance loan, helped the organization earn CDFI certification, and built partnerships that will continue to serve families throughout WNC.
“Kelly’s work at MHO has had a transformational and lasting impact on the communities we serve,” said Geoffrey Barton, MHO’s President & CEO. “For over 20 years, she’s been dedicated to helping families overcome barriers to homeownership. Kelly has not only created a huge number of homeowners in our region, but also fueled her clients’ dreams to launch successful businesses, nurture stable families, and create generational impact for their kids.”
Working For The Community
Her colleagues and partners describe her as hardworking, funny, persistent, and deeply passionate for the people she serves. Mary Kate Rikard, Lending Manager at HomeTrust Bank, said, “I’ve had the privilege of knowing Kelly for almost 25 years. She’s a tireless advocate for the underdog and has made affordable housing her passion project. She’s helped break cycles, change futures, and create generational wealth. Calling her a friend is one of my biggest blessings.”
Linda Youngblood, Senior Loan Officer at Movement Mortgage, said, “Kelly has been the face for lending at MHO for almost 20 years. She is the one who helped so many people organize their financial lives so they could actually buy homes. Her prowess in grants and pulling all these packages together has been unparalleled in this county. This is somebody who really puts a lot of keys in people’s hands for their new home!”
Angi Welch, MHO’s Loan Fund Officer, first connected with Kelly in 2016 when she was a loan officer searching for down payment assistance resources for her first-time homebuyer clients. “I googled ‘down payment assistance’ and up popped Kelly’s name,” Angi recalls. Over the years, they worked on many loans together, helping clients achieve homeownership. In 2024, after 30 years in lending, Angi found herself struggling to help clients amid rising interest rates and property values when she received an email from Kelly about a Loan Fund Officer position opening at MHO. “It was one of the best decisions I ever made,” Angi said. “I will cherish the friendship, the knowledge, and the impact that she has had on the community through MHO. She will be missed terribly. I wish her nothing but the best!”
Throughout her tenure, Kelly’s sense of humor, passion, and perseverance helped the MHO Loan Fund through many challenges while staying focused on its impact as a community resource. Thank you, Kelly, for all you’ve given to this community. You’ve made home possible for so many! We will miss you at MHO!
