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The director of the Waterloo Housing Authority stepped back into her former profession as a real estate agent Thursday, holding open houses for two of the four homes the local government agency built for sale to low-income, first-time buyers.
"When you look at the down payment assistance programs and the education programs we have out there for people, there is just no excuse for them to not be able to buy a home," Washington said.
"The Cedar Valley has not been hit (with the housing downturn) like some other areas have," she added. "The homes are selling."
The four homes under construction by the WHA, including two in the 900 block of Oneida Street and two on Monroe Street, represent the agency's first stab at new home construction since 1993, when a grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development helped erect 10 houses. Proceeds from the sale of those homes were used to build the four newest houses.
The Oneida homes are directly across the street from Furgerson-Fields Park, just a few blocks from the Dr. Walter Cunningham School for Excellence elementary. All the homes are in a neighborhood that has been a focus for other federal housing programs administered through the Waterloo Community Development Board.
The 1,200-square-foot ranch houses include three bedrooms, a full basement and an attached garage.
They are being sold for $120,000 to buyers considered low-income based on HUD regulations, but a number of programs are available to reduce the price. WHA is targeting the homes at first-time home buyers working their way out of subsidized housing, such as the Section 8 home ownership vouchers and Family Self-Sufficiency and down payment assistance programs.
The homes are in the Consolidated Urban Revitalization Area and Enterprise Zones, which provide tax breaks for investment, and are eligible for $11,000 in down payment grants through the Waterloo Housing Partnership program; $10,000 from a Community Development Board program; and $8,000 from the WHA.
Buyers still must qualify for the remaining $91,000 mortgage, which would lead to monthly payments around $570.
Former Waterloo Mayor John Rooff won a contract to build the four homes through his construction business.
City Councilman Reggie Schmitt is familiar with low-income housing needs through his work with Habitat for Humanity, which is building a home near the WHA houses.
"My compliments to Ethel Washington for all her hard work on the WHA homes," Schmitt said. "Without her dedication they wouldn't be there.
"These WHA homes and the Habitat for Humanity homes are not the typical low-income housing," he added. "They are filling the 'affordable' niche that has been being neglected. The WHA homes are the infill housing that Waterloo needs."
Potential buyers or others with questions about the homes can contact Washington at 233-0201.
Contact Tim Jamison at (319) 291-1577 or tim.jamison@wcfcourier.com.
To see more of the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.wcfcourier.com/. Copyright (c) 2008, Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier, Iowa Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.
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