Webster Bank Joins Housing Development Fund’s Loan Pool For Affordable Multi-Family Housing With $1.5 Million Commitment

Loan Pool Now Includes 17 Members; Multi-Family Loan Fund Totals $28 Million

STAMFORD, Conn., March 12, 2007- Housing Development Fund (HDF), a unique nonprofit bank providing funding for affordable housing and an array of homebuyer assistance programs, announced that Webster Bank has become the 17th member of its loan pool for affordable multi-family housing. With Webster Bank’s $1.5 million commitment to HDF’s Multi-Family Loan Fund, the fund now totals $28 million. It assists individual owners and small developers of affordable multi-family properties, generally 20 units or less, who have traditionally been underserved by the conventional lending industry.

The fund lends to individuals and small-to-medium-size developers who are in the early stages of building portfolios of rental properties, including affordable units. HDF’s loan pool allows its members to share the risk of lending to these enthusiastic and less experienced landlords. HDF further reduces the risk by assisting the borrowers with information and resources.

“ We welcome Webster Bank and its contribution to helping solve the problem of affordable housing in southwestern Connecticut,” said Joan Carty, HDF Executive Director. “Webster joins our 16 other bank and corporate members in making the Multi-Family Loan Fund the largest in Connecticut providing first mortgage loans for small apartment buildings and developments.”

Webster Bank became aware of HDF’s loan pool through Senior Vice President Robin Gallagher, its representative to the organization. Gallagher was involved with HDF earlier in her career with another lender. She believed that HDF provided a low-risk vehicle for Webster to meet its own commitment to its communities as well as its goals under the Community Reinvestment Act. She serves on the HDF board of directors and as Chair of HDF’s Multi-Family Loan Committee.

HDF’s Multi-Family Lending Program was created to facilitate the development of affordable housing. It provides multi-family homebuyers, as well as nonprofit and private developers of affordable, senior and special needs units, with a variety of finance options. HDF provides acquisition/construction, pre-development, bridge and permanent first mortgage financing at favorable interest rates – one of the only local sources of long-term, below market financing for affordable housing in its service area.

Through its approach that pools risk for lenders, HDF is a leader in providing first mortgages for the development of multi-family units. Other members of the Housing Development Fund Loan Pool are: Bank of America; Citibank F.S.B., Connecticut; Commerce Bank; Fairfield County Bancorp; First County Bank; Hudson City Savings Bank; J.P. Morgan Chase; Newtown Savings Bank; Patriot National Bank; People’s Bank; Pitney Bowes, Inc.; Savings Bank of Danbury; TD BankNorth; Union Savings; U.S. Trust of Connecticut; and Wachovia Bank, NA.

About Housing Development Fund
Founded in 1989, the Housing Development Fund has expanded to serve all of southwestern Connecticut from its headquarters in Stamford and a Danbury office opened in 2004. HDF offers a variety of homebuyer programs, including its First Time Homebuyers Program, SmartMove low interest second mortgage program, CHFA (Connecticut Housing Finance Authority) approved Homebuyer Education Classes Program and Below Market Rate Program (BMR). HDF is a HUD-certified lender and Housing Counseling agency.

HDF manages public/private partnerships to lend funds for these affordable housing initiatives. It has the largest public/private pool of mortgage financing for affordable housing in Connecticut – both homeownership and multi-family development- $38 million.

The Housing Development Fund, Inc. has its headquarters at 100 Prospect Street, South Tower Plaza, Suite SP-101, Stamford, Connecticut 06901. It also maintains an office at 8 West Street, Suite 202-204, Danbury, Connecticut 06810. For additional information call Tami Strauss at 203-969-1830 x19 or visit www.hdf-ct.org.

About Webster Financial Corporation
Webster Financial Corporation is the holding company for Webster Bank, National Association and Webster Insurance. With $17.1 billion in assets, Webster provides business and consumer banking, mortgage, insurance, financial planning, trust and investment services through 177 banking offices, 334 ATMs, telephone banking and the Internet. Webster Bank owns the asset-based lending firm Webster Business Credit Corporation, the insurance premium finance company Budget Installment Corp., Center Capital Corporation, an equipment finance company headquartered in Farmington, Connecticut and provides health savings account trustee and administrative services through HSA Bank, a division of Webster Bank, Member FDIC and equal housing lender.

For more information about Webster, including past press releases and the latest annual report, visit the Webster website at www.websteronline.com.