Mr. John Afoun
John Afoun took over the helm of the Moline Housing Authority on November 1st, 2010. He is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the agency. MHA has maintained it’s high performer status for the Public Housing Program under his leadership, and there has been significant improvement in the day-to-day administration of the Housing Choice Voucher Program (Section 8).
Mr. Afoun’s Experience
Mr. John Frank Afoun has 29 years of experience in housing and related fields both domestically and abroad. Over the years, he has managed housing authorities ranging in size from 246 public housing units and 303 Section 8 vouchers in Greenburgh, New York to the equivalent of 27,000 public housing units and 8,000 Public Sector Housing units for the Refugee Housing Authority in London, UK.
John has experience managing a state-funded and regulated housing authority and a housing authority regulated by the U.S. federal Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). He has been responsible for the day-to-day operations of the organizations in which he served including the development, maintenance, and management of all housing stock, the agency’s non-profit private housing stock, and the Section 8 program. As part of his management positions, he has overseen all budgets, policy, and operational procedures, managing the effective use of agency resources and staff while ensuring all Capital Projects were completed within budget and on schedule. He has created strategic goals and monitoring their progress while directing all administrative and management activities.
John Afoun studied for his MBA in London, England. He holds multiple Housing, management, maintenance, and building management certifications and he is a member of the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials (NAHRO), and the Public Housing Authorities Director’s Association (PHADA).
Mr. Afoun’s Roles
In his role as Executive Director, Mr. Afoun represented his Agencies in proposals and technical consultations with Architectural/Engineering firms, contractors, banks, municipal officials, and other government agencies. He has secured funding, and developed new senior housing, and was responsible for the modernization of an Agency’s entire housing stock increasing the number and the quality of affordable housing in the area.
While working in the UK, John streamlined operations and reorganized multiple agencies resulting in huge cost savings, increased efficiency, and productivity. He has developed and successfully implemented a comprehensive welfare-to-work program, advised the management committee on all aspects of housing development and investments, and carried out development appraisals, valuations, and feasibility studies. He identified development sites within the city and ensured that projects were completed within budget and on schedule. John has developed a homeownership program and a marketing strategy for the sale of Authority-constructed homes. He developed a mechanism for credit risk assessment to determine residents’ ability to afford and maintain a home and developed a policy and strategy to prevent and end homelessness.
Under his leadership, several of the Agencies in which he served achieved HUD-rated high-performer status and became award-winning Agencies.