Searching for affordable housing solutions for low to moderate-income households is hard in the best times. With Knoxville’s recently booming real estate market, the task of securing affordable housing for many has quickly turned into a crisis-like situation.
My name is Keely. I am a Knoxville area banker and a board member of The Restoration House. I am responsible for the origination of my firm’s affordable housing portfolio mortgage loan. The loan is available to qualified low to moderate-income borrowers and offers 100% financing with no private mortgage insurance premium.
Working in this arena for eight years – affordable housing has become my passion. Limited incomes result in limited budgets. In a real estate market with home values soaring, the American Dream of homeownership feels like an unreachable goal for many low to moderate-income buyers.
Additionally, program offerings designed to assist low to moderate-income families are often complex and restrictive, resulting in solving a complex puzzle to assist these buyers as they travel the journey to become homeowners.
I was recently introduced to a mom graduating from The Restoration House and wanted to share a bit of her success at becoming a homeowner in early 2022! She has excellent credit, and we quickly had a per-qualification in hand. She faced a competitive real estate market that often resulted in 20 or more offers on a single home available for sale, many without appraisal and home inspection contingencies.
I introduced Brittany to Neighborhood Housing, a local Community Housing Development Organization (CHDO); that was in the process of renovating a home for sale. CHDO’s mission is to provide affordable housing solutions to the communities they serve. Brittany loved the North Knoxville location, and the house fit her budget wonderfully.
Additionally, since she was securing a home purchase with a CHDO, Brittany could qualify for a down payment and closing cost assistance of $14,999 (which becomes a forgivable grant after five years in the home). Brittany had completed some heavy lifting and had been saving for her transition to homeownership under The Restoration House’s IDA Savings Account.
Brittany was able to leverage her savings into a $3,600 match toward her home purchase cost from The Restoration House. Brittany’s story is even more special as her total housing payment is below 29% of her gross earnings. As a low to moderate-income single mother – controlling this portion of her monthly expenses is life-changing.
She made homeownership truly an affordable solution by layering programs with her IDA savings and CHDO (HOME Funds). Brittany made a wise choice in her home purchase and made her dream of homeownership a reality.
Searching for affordable housing solutions for low to moderate-income households is hard in the best times. With Knoxville’s recently booming real estate market, the task of securing affordable housing for many has quickly turned into a crisis-like situation.
My name is Keely. I am a Knoxville area banker and a board member of The Restoration House. I am responsible for the origination of my firm’s affordable housing portfolio mortgage loan. The loan is available to qualified low to moderate-income borrowers and offers 100% financing with no private mortgage insurance premium.
Working in this arena for eight years – affordable housing has become my passion. Limited incomes result in limited budgets. In a real estate market with home values soaring, the American Dream of homeownership feels like an unreachable goal for many low to moderate-income buyers.
Additionally, program offerings designed to assist low to moderate-income families are often complex and restrictive, resulting in solving a complex puzzle to assist these buyers as they travel the journey to become homeowners.
I was recently introduced to a mom graduating from The Restoration House and wanted to share a bit of her success at becoming a homeowner in early 2022! She has excellent credit, and we quickly had a per-qualification in hand. She faced a competitive real estate market that often resulted in 20 or more offers on a single home available for sale, many without appraisal and home inspection contingencies.
I introduced Brittany to Neighborhood Housing, a local Community Housing Development Organization (CHDO); that was in the process of renovating a home for sale. CHDO’s mission is to provide affordable housing solutions to the communities they serve. Brittany loved the North Knoxville location, and the house fit her budget wonderfully.
Additionally, since she was securing a home purchase with a CHDO, Brittany could qualify for a down payment and closing cost assistance of $14,999 (which becomes a forgivable grant after five years in the home). Brittany had completed some heavy lifting and had been saving for her transition to homeownership under The Restoration House’s IDA Savings Account.
Brittany was able to leverage her savings into a $3,600 match toward her home purchase cost from The Restoration House. Brittany’s story is even more special as her total housing payment is below 29% of her gross earnings. As a low to moderate-income single mother – controlling this portion of her monthly expenses is life-changing.
She made homeownership truly an affordable solution by layering programs with her IDA savings and CHDO (HOME Funds). Brittany made a wise choice in her home purchase and made her dream of homeownership a reality.