HDF Awarded Homebuyer Program Grant
August 3, 2007; As originally appeared in
The Commercial Record
The Housing Development Fund has
received a $25,000 First County Bank Foundation grant in
support
of its First
Time Homebuyer Program. The program helps low- and moderate-income
households in the southwestern part of the state to achieve
homeownership.
The Stamford-based Housing Development Fund is a nonprofit
bank providing funding for affordable housing and an array
of homebuyer-assistance programs. The First Time Homebuyer
Program is designed to identify and help qualified candidates
purchase homes through education, counseling and special
financing, all designed to close the affordability gap.
Since
2003, the First County Bank Foundation has awarded $90,000
to the program, supporting HDF’s efforts to
make affordable housing accessible to all qualified households.
This year, the foundation received more than 105 applications
and awarded grants to 44 agencies.
HDF’s
program includes homebuyer orientation sessions, one-on-one
homebuyer counseling classes, pre- and post-purchase
seminars, and assistance with financing and the home-purchase
process. The process begins with an initial orientation session,
which determines if applicants qualify to participate in
the program. HDF then provides qualified homebuyers with
one-on-one educational counseling. The organization puts
together individual financing packages required to buy a
home or condominium selected on the open market, or a below-market
rate unit available from HDF developers or municipal partners.
HDF staff members offer assistance at every step of the purchase
process and then provide post-purchase counseling.
HDF programs have helped more than 650 families achieve
homeownership and HDF has financed the creation of affordable
rental and for-sale units for 600 additional families. HDF
first-time homebuyers have become residents of communities
such as Stamford, Danbury, Greenwich, Norwalk, Westport,
New Canaan and Fairfield.
HDF
programs are funded and supported through its partnership
with 17 banks, municipalities, government entities, private
developers, nonprofit agencies, corporations and foundations.
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