Home Buying and Homeowner Counseling From Neighborhood Housing Services
Neighborhood Housing Services of Greater Berks gives one-on-one counseling to people who want to buy a home, who need to understand and build their credit first, or who already own a home and want help handling it. NHS is a HUD-Approved Housing Counseling Agency, and its office is in Reading.
There are four counseling programs. Credit counseling sessions help you understand your credit score and build a personal budget and savings plan, with the goal of mortgage readiness and financial freedom. Pre-purchase counseling is a one-on-one session for people thinking about becoming homeowners: a counselor looks at your financial situation, goes through your credit report, reviews the Loan Estimate and helps you build a budget. Pre-closing counseling is for people who want a PHFA product and have a credit score lower than 680, and covers the same review of finances, credit report, Loan Estimate and budget. Post-purchase counseling is for people who already own: a counselor reviews your credit report and budget and gives advice on maintaining and repairing your home and on budgeting for unexpected repairs and improvements.
The HomeOwnership Center combines financial education, financial counseling and financial coaching. Its services and resources include homebuyer education seminars, individualized pre-purchase counseling, home inspection requirement guidelines, affordable first-mortgage resources, NHS Down Payment and Closing Cost Assistance loans, information about how to find a realtor, and post-purchase counseling.
To start, submit the homeownership services inquiry on the counseling programs page at nhsgb.org. The form asks for your full name, a subject, your email, your phone, your household or family size, a time preference between 9 AM and 4 PM, and any special accommodation you need. After the team reviews your information, a member of the team contacts you by email about the appropriate next steps. The same page has a link to schedule an appointment, which writes to clabrador@nhsgb.org and mbaez@nhsgb.org, and a budget form you can download. Intake forms are posted on the site in English and in Spanish.
The office is at 210 North Fifth Street, Second Floor, Suite 201, Reading, PA 19601. Hours are Monday through Friday 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM and Saturday 8:00 AM to 12:00 PM for the dropbox only, closed Sunday, and the office is closed for a lunch break from 1:30 pm to 2:30 pm. For general questions, call 610-372-8433 or email contactus@nhsgb.org.
The page does not say what the counseling costs, so ask when you get in touch. It also does not say whether you must live in a particular area, how long the wait for an appointment is, or what documents to bring.
Source: nhsgb.org/counseling-programs, read September 18, 2026.
The details
In Neighborhood Housing Services of Greater Berks’s words
Buying a house can be challenging, but our counseling services are here to guide you. We offer expert advice on mortgages, savings, and affordable homeownership. Individualized counseling sessions provide individuals with personalized guidance to help them gain a deeper understanding of their credit scores. Additionally, they assist in creating a customized personal budget and savings plan tailored to the individual’s specific financial situation. The goal is to help them achieve mortgage…
En español: la página del proveedor →
Organization
Neighborhood Housing Services of Greater Berks
Organization profile in our directory →About this listing
This listing summarizes publicly available information from nhsgb.org/counseling-programs. Last recorded review: September 18, 2026. Contact the provider to confirm eligibility, hours and availability before you go. If something here is wrong, tell us.