Claudia Ratcliff probably doesn't know that the brand-new, one-story home she's bought at 635 North Delphine Avenue in Waynesboro, Virginia, is a case study in how to make effective use of the array of HUD and other available resources to promote homeownership.

The 1100 square-foot home was built for $40,000 from the ground up by the Waynesboro Authority's HUD-funded Youthbuild program, the fifth it's completed.

The Commonwealth's HUD-funded HOME program helped Ms. Ratcliff put together a downpayment.

The Waynesboro Authority's new Section 8/Housing Choice Voucher program is helping her meet her monthly homeownership expenses.

And the Virginia Housing Development Authority stepped in as both lender and willing partner to help Ms. Ratcliff become a first-time buyer.

Thanks to several HUD programs, the house at 635 North Delphine Avenue is home to Waynesboro resident Claudia Ratcliff.

"All in all," says Authority Executive Director R. Edward DeLapp, "the house on Delphine Avenue is a wonderful example of how resources from both the federal and state governments can be pooled together to help people own a piece of the American Dream. Indeed, it worked so well the first time that it's the very same approach we're taking on the sixth home we've just completed under our Youthbuild program."

Susan Dewey, executive director of VHDA adds that, "Virginia has been one of the pioneers in developing innovative approaches to Section 8 Homeownership. It's not always easy for a housing authority to get one of these programs up and running, but the smiles on the faces of the new Section 8 homeowner make the headaches and hard work worth it."

The Waynesboro is the fourth housing authority in Virginia to use vouchers for homeownership purposes, joining Danville, Charlottesville and Big Stone Gap. The Waynesboro Authority operates 189 units of public housing and administers 331 vouchers.