AUBURN – A popular program to help people buy homes downtown will change to keep up with a 20 percent increase in residential property values.
“It’s an important program, and it’s alive and well,” City Manager Pat Finnigan said. “It is not on hold.”
Buyers who qualify can get loans from the city and Coastal Enterprises Inc., as well as grants. Some loans would be forgiven if the buyer pays off the others. In some cases, the city buys the property and leases it over time.
It’s open to those who earn 80 percent of the median income, or less. For example, a family of four that makes less than $37,350 per year would qualify.
But city officials found that even with the subsidy, most would-be buyers couldn’t afford to buy.
For example, a family of three making $29,900 per year would qualify for enough subsidies to help it afford a $90,300 duplex. The average price for downtown duplexes in Auburn was $91,835 as of May 2003.
The changes tie the amount of money a family could get to their total incomes – regardless of family size. That would help smaller families qualify. Each loan is also about $1,000 larger.
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