HUD
No. 04-051 (404) 331-5001 ext. 2013 |
For
Release Thursday June 3, 2004 |
HUD SECRETARY JACKSON ANNOUNCES $4.4 MILLION IN DOWNPAYMENT ASSISTANCE FOR FIRST-TIME HOMEBUYERS IN GEORGIA
ATLANTA - Hundreds of low-income families living in communities throughout Georgia can now realize the dream of homeownership because of $4.4 million in American Dream Downpayment Initiative (ADDI) funding announced today by Housing and Urban Development Secretary Alphonso Jackson.
"The single greatest obstacle to homeownership is the downpayment
and closing costs," said Jackson. "This
program, will
give first-time homebuyers downpayment assistance grants up to $10,000
or six percent of the home's purchase price, whichever is greater.
Not only will these grants help to defray the upfront costs of purchasing
a
first home, they can also be used to help offset the costs of
rehabilitating the property."
To be eligible for this assistance, individuals must be first-time
homebuyers interested in purchasing one- to four-family housing,
condominium unit, cooperative unit or manufactured housing. In addition,
individuals who qualify for this assistance must have incomes not
exceeding 80 percent of area median income. If you are interested
in
obtaining downpayment assistance through this program, please
contact your local
community.
Jackson said, "During the Bush Administration, a record number
of new homeowners, specifically minority families,
have achieved
a home of their own. I encourage Congress to fully support the President's
request to continue this important new homeownership tool so even
more Minnesota families can realize their American Dream."
Community |
American
Dream Funding
|
Athens-Clarke |
$119,344
|
Atlanta |
$489,022
|
Augusta |
$150,331
|
Columbus-Muscogee |
$127,767
|
Macon |
$56,621
|
Savannah |
$131,654
|
Clayton County |
$139,752
|
Cobb County Consortium |
$296,157
|
De Kalb County |
$416,344
|
Fulton County Consortium |
$242,196
|
Gwinnett County |
$210,068
|
State of Georgia |
$2,033,943
|
Georgia Total |
$4,413,199
|
The
American Dream Downpayment Act will be administered under
HUD's HOME Investment Partnerships Program (HOME). Since
its inception, the HOME Program has assisted more than 300,000 families
to become homeowners,
55 percent of which are minorities.
June is National Homeownership month - a month-long educational
outreach effort designed to provide important homebuying information
and financial tools, particularly to minority families. The Census
reports that, for the first
time in our nation's history, more than
half of minority families own their own home. But minority homeownership
rates still fall well short of the national homeownership rate of
nearly 70 percent. In June 2002, President Bush
issued The Homeownership
Challenge to close this 'homeownership gap' by adding 5.5 million
minority homeowners
by the end of the decade. Since then, more than
two dozen organizations are working to create more than
$1 trillion
in mortgage financing for minority homebuyers.
HUD is the nation's housing agency committed to increasing homeownership,
particularly among minorities; creating affordable housing opportunities
for low-income Americans; and supporting the homeless, elderly,
people with disabilities and people living with AIDS. The Department
also promotes economic and community development as
well as enforces
the nation's fair housing laws. More information about HUD and its
programs is available on the the Internet and espanol.hud.gov.
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