First Time Home Buyer

For the residents of a trailer park in Olympia Washington the threat of eviction vanishes as they own their homes.  The residents of the park in Olympia were soon to be evicted and lose all they had invested in their homes when a large sum of money was demanded to keep their homes; a feat that was out of reach for all of the residents.  The 30 College Street Mobile Home Park residents were told they had to pay $95,000 each for their lots or they would be evicted.  Unbelievable distress turned into cooperative hope and then unimaginable joy of success when the residents banded together for a common goal.

Just 10 months after the demand for the money the residents of the park formed a cooperative and raised $1/7 million.  With the help of federal, state and county grants as well as low-interest loans the residents are looking forward to signing off on the deal September 12, 2008.  The residents will move from soon to be evicted renters to first time home owners by working towards a common goal.

According to a public interest lawyer with the Columbia Legal Services of Seattle, most of the residents would be without a place to live if it were not for the deal they came together to make.  The deal turned out to be a win-win for everyone involved.  For the residents who did not own their homes prior to the deal they are not new home owners and have been given a sense of accomplishment and success.  The residents who already held mortgages on their homes but did not own the property faced losing their investment if they had to move their trailer off the property; most would end up in the dump.  These residents received a sense of relief and a lifting of the stress and worry that plagued them for months.  For all of the residence who was saved from eviction they have been given an experience of a lifetime as neighbors are brought together into a big family.  According to one resident, “It’s been a real joy to participate in this kind of experience.”

The Olympia Park, once named College Street Mobile Home Park is now renamed.  The park is now called Hidden Village and it is the first park in the state to benefit from a new manufactured home program.  The new program was established by Washington’s Housing Trust Fund.  The former owner of the park property was also the first to receive a tax waiver; the waiver was approved by the Legislature to provide more incentives for park owners.  The goal of the tax waiver is to entice park owners to sell the property to the residents instead of selling to developers.  By selling to the residence many families are spared from eviction and are able to continue their lives as home and property owners.

Land values have been exploding and this has led to the closure of hundreds of trailer and manufactured home parks around America.  Landowners have cashed in by selling the property to developers.  In Washington State alone, nearly 90 mobile home parks closed between 2002 and 2006.  A representative from a nonprofit says “So many manufactured home parks are closing around the state that we’re losing valuable affordable housing.  It’s more cost effective to save this housing than to build new affordable housing.”  This representative played a role in helping the residents organize their push to purchase the park.

This story has a happy ending for these 30 residences but the story has not ended so well in many other parks that have sold.  Perhaps with this wonderful success story others will have pick up on the drive to own and the new legislation will give the park owners incentive to sell to the residence and not the developers.  Again a win win for all.

The state of Vermont, particularly the area of Chicopee Falls are finding hope as the Chicopee Neighborhood Development Corporation closes on properties in the city resulting in new homes for low to moderate income families. In an effort to provide housing and revive the area programs are setting out to assist families that are struggling to become first time home owners in today’s economy. This is the first housing projects the CNDC, a nonprofit corporation, has undertaken after its reactivation in the fall of 2007. The houses bought by the nonprofit company will be sold to first time homebuyers. This is causing a lot of excitement in the community as there seems to be a need and a desire to bring residents to Chicopee.

The properties that were recently bought by the CNDC are in the Chicopee Falls area of city and will have single family homes built on them. They are hoping to be able to break ground on the properties in October. Once built, the homes will then be sold at below market prices that are in the $140,000 to $160,000 price range which is considered affordable for the average family of four in this area.

The company will begin marketing the homes to first time home buyers as soon as they break ground. First time homebuyers will have guidance and assistance from the CNDC including assistance in securing a first time home buyers loan to the home inspection process and the additional rigors of the first time home buyer.

To qualify, potential buyers must first take a first time homebuyer course from a certified First Time Homebuyer Counseling Agency; fortunately the corporation is such an agency. The corporation will also offer financial assistance to qualified first time homebuyers as well. The CNDC has recently launched a Web site to make their services more accessible to people; the site is http://www.chicopeedevelopment.org/.

The city’s housing director said that it is not surprising that the programs have been so well received. Letting people know there are resources available to people to help them help themselves is a great thing.
The homes are able to be sold at below market prices because of federal funds used by the city for construction loans and developmental subsidies. This year the city has used $300,000 in federal housing funds to help finance the construction of two other single family homes in the area and both are now owned by families.

Mayor Michael D Bissonnette initiated the revival of the Chicopee Neighborhood Development Corporation last year in an effort to help people become home owners and give new life to oppressed neighborhoods. Targeted areas for this include the Chicopee Center, Willimansett and Chicopee Falls. This revitalization and program is met with great hope and great excitement from the city as well as those finding help and relief.

First time home buyers are facing a number of barriers to becoming first time home owners today. Included in these barriers is the current market, the increasing cost of a down payment and a lack of confidence in today’s economy. These barriers are very real to everyone looking to buy homes; however, they are not insurmountable. Most adults admit to finding home buying intimidating and money related issues are a big concern that often makes the potential home buyer back off. Many have concerns about finding the right home and find the entire process to be intimidating. Being able to shop for homes online and obtain as much information about the home and the neighborhood without the pressure of a sales agent is appealing to the people intimidated. Some of the top real estate agencies in the industries have addressed this concern by delivering a large and fresh collection of listings with new features that allow the buyer more options to remove the uncertainties they may have. By providing comprehensive information with relevant tools and links to local realtors online realtor sources help make the process of buying a home easy and less stressful. The first time home buyer is looking at the area differently today. Naturally the rate of crime is still a top concern; however, being close to daily conveniences is a close second. This is due to environmental concerns as well as the ever increasing price of gas. The home buyer of today is willing to sacrifice cultural and recreational amenities for environmentally green features over buying other houses in today’s housing market. The importance of community and concern over gas prices are evident as buyers look for accessibility with just a small percentage of home buyers being willing to sacrifice the closeness to work and shopping. Green features such as solar panels and energy saving appliances are more important than the more luxury amenities.

Understanding the mortgage as well as the entire financing process during times of change is a major issue and barrier of the first time home buyer. The majority wish the process of taking out a mortgage was easier to understand. Some of these buyers report that understanding financing and the uncertainty of the lending process is the most intimidating part of buying a home. The recent changes in the percentage of down payment required for a mortgage is a major issue for many buyers as well. The lack of money for a down payment prevents around a quarter of buyers from buying a home; more even than buyers with poor credit, low income or lack of confidence in the economy.

The majority of first time home buyers will make sacrifices to save money and earn extra money to be able to buy a home in today’s housing market. These sacrifices include spending on personal luxuries, clothes, shoes and accessories. Buyers are willing to go out less often, clip coupons and even cancel vacations to buy that first home.