A study by the Philadelphia Federal Reserve found measurable benefits to one-on-one pre-purchase homeownership counseling in comparison to a single brief classroom session. The study compared examined the experiences of 425 first-time homebuyers, all of whom received only a two-hour pre-purchase workshop. Half of the participants received additional ongoing one-on-one counseling. The analysis showed that participants who had received the one-on-one counseling demonstrated greater creditworthiness as they prepared to qualify for a home mortgage. Researchers saw the clearest difference when they compared the two groups' credit scores, total debt, and various delinquency days on payments.