Affordable housing developers sue state
Affordable housing developers sue state
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NAR awards grants to local boards
NAR awards grants to local boards. Four Florida Realtor groups received Housing Opportunity Fund grants totaling $14,400 to promote affordable housing in their communities.
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With home affordability up, buyers starting to return
With home affordability up, buyers starting to return
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NAR designates Jupiter, Fla., as an ‘Ambassador’ city
JUPITER, Fla. – March 10, 2009 – Five cities have been designated as 2009 Ambassador Cities by the National Association of Realtors® (NAR) and the U.S. Conference of Mayors. The list includes Jupiter, Fla., and the Jupiter-Tequesta-Hobe Sound Association of Realtors. Other Ambassador Cities are Houston; Lexington, Ky.; Helena, Mont.; and Tri-Valley, Calif.
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Funding low-cost housing
WASHINGTON – Feb. 10, 2009 – Can the U.S. afford its workforce housing programs? And if so, how should they be funded? Different bills are under consideration on Capitol Hill as part of the economic stimulus. Each has the same goal, but they use different tactics.
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Florida workforce housing program releases $5 million in funding
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – July 1, 2008 – Florida Housing Finance Corporation, the state arm that funds workforce housing, released $5 million in funding this morning under its $10 million-dollar Homeownership Pool (HOP) Program. This funding is made available to eligible homebuyers, divided into two releases of $5 million each. The second $5 million will be distributed in January 2009.
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HUD makes $1 billion in grants through 35 programs
WASHINGTON – May 9, 2008 – The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) today published its fiscal year 2008 “SuperNOFA,” an annual funding notice that makes available more than $1 billion in grants through 35 programs. HUD also plans to release an additional $1.5 billion in homeless grants later in the year.
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SHOW YOUR COMMITMENT TO HOUSING
Past FAR President Mike Dooley is on a mission. His goal: Spread news about the FAR-backed “Support Homeownership for All” specialty license plate statewide. “We want to reach everybody. We want to reach the entire public. But we’re taking baby steps because it only has been for sale for about a year and our funds are limited right now,” Dooley says.
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Realtors speak out on behalf of housing affordability for veterans
WASHINGTON – March 3, 2008 – The National Association of Realtors® (NAR) testified recently in Congress that the Veterans Home Loan Guaranty Program should continue to be a valuable asset in helping the nation’s veterans achieve the dream of homeownership in a way that is safe, fair and affordable.
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Crist appoints affordable housing commissioners
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Feb. 19, 2008 – Gov. Crist appointed six new members to Florida’s Affordable Housing Study Commission, which makes public policy recommendations to the governor and Legislature to “promote the production, preservation and maintenance of safe, decent affordable housing for all Floridians.”
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KUDOS TO MIAMI-DADE
NAR and the U.S. Conference of Mayors named Miami-Dade County an Ambassador City for its Housing Central Web portal, a virtual one-stop housing center that connects residents with affordable homes and rental units.
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33,000 subprime mortgage homeowners help by FHASecure
WASHINGTON – Dec. 3, 2007 – U.S. HUD Secretary Alphonso Jackson announced that more than 33,000 borrowers, to date, have refinanced their subprime home loans with FHASecure, a government-insured foreclosure avoidance initiative created in September. An additional 20,000 are in the pipeline for approval this month, bringing the total to more than 53,000 in a four-month period.
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HUD takes on housing assistance oversight for 30,000 on Dec. 1
WASHINGTON – Nov. 26, 2007 – Nearly 30,000 residents affected by the 2005 Gulf Coast hurricanes will receive housing assistance from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) rather than the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) rental program on Dec. 1.
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HUD creates blueprint for affordable housing and historic preservation
WASHINGTON – Nov. 7, 2007 – Historic preservationists and affordable housing advocates are often at odds when it comes to developing strategies to preserve older housing while providing affordable housing opportunities for working families. In fact, there is a prevailing myth that the cost of historic preservation actually prices many working families out of many urban neighborhoods.
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A WORKFORCE FORCE
Lawmakers in Florida created the Community Workforce Housing Innovation Pilot Program (CWHIP) in 2006 to provide affordable housing to teachers, firefighters, police officers and nurses.
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No Deal For Briny Breezes
The sale of Briny Breezes, a Florida trailer park, would have made each resident a millionaire. But the deal is dead. It’s one of the last South Florida sites with land on the Intracoastal and Atlantic Ocean, giving a developer the freedom to build a multiuse complex. The deal was not without controversy.
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HUD rolls out green initiative for some properties
WASHINGTON – July 23, 2007 – The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) rolled out a nationwide pilot program to encourage owners of multifamily Section 8 properties to rehabilitate and operate their buildings using “green building” principles. HUD includes its Health Homes Initiative in the program and hopes to encourage sustainability, energy efficiency, the use of recycled materials and an improvement for indoor air quality. Green building practices are designed to lower utility costs, thereby benefiting taxpayers, property owners and a building’s residents.
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Proposal would create a national affordable housing trust fund
June 29, 2007 – Florida has affordable housing trust funds, but a bill introduced yesterday in the U.S. Congress would take it to the next level – creating a national affordable housing trust fund.
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UF receives $500,000 from Wachovia Foundation to research affordable housing
June 27, 2007 – To help address the need for affordable housing for people of all income levels throughout the Sunshine State, the Wachovia Foundation is giving $500,000 to UF for a three-year research project. UF plans to create a software model that helps communities evaluate and rank areas identified as suitable for affordable housing.
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HUD calls on cities to ease restrictions on workforce housing
According to HUD, unnecessary regulations are pricing housing out of the reach of millions of working families. HUD called on local governments to cut excessive regulations that drive up housing costs, and 11 communities in Florida so far have agreed to reexamine their regulations.
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HUD uses technology to create affordable housing
WASHINGTON – June 7, 2007 –The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) yesterday announced the completion of America’s first PATH Concept Home featuring more than 60 efficient, sustainable and flexible products and systems in one affordable home.
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HUD hosts housing summit to address problems
WASHINGTON – May 15, 2007 – How can the U.S. minimize the impact from risky loans, predatory lending and other current real estate problems? The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) yesterday hosted a Homeownership Summit with leading stakeholders in the housing community to discuss the impact of risky, high-priced loans, departmental actions against predatory lending and how modernizing the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) will provide a safer alternative to exotic mortgages.
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HUD: $1.8 billion for affordable housing and first-time owners
ST. LOUIS – May 9, 2007 – U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Alphonso Jackson announced that thousands of U.S. communities will share almost $1.8 billion to promote HUD’s affordable housing and first-time homebuyer programs.
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NAR urges HUD to revamp FHA program
WASHINGTON – April 10, 2007 – The National Association of Realtors® (NAR) yesterday encouraged the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to quickly change the FHA mortgage insurance program. In a letter sent to HUD Secretary Alphonso Jackson, NAR President Pat Vredevoogd Combs strongly urged HUD to change FHA rules and waive the requirement that a homeowner’s mortgage be “current” in order to refinance into an FHA loan product.
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NAR recognizes six cities for expanding affordable housing opportunities
WASHINGTON – April 4, 2007 –The National Association of Realtors® (NAR) and the United States Conference of Mayors have designated six cities as 2007 Ambassador Cities. NAR and the mayors’ conference, through its Council on the New American City, launched the Ambassadors for Cities Program in 2004 to encourage collaborations between local city governments and Realtor associations to expand housing opportunities in their communities.
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A free gift
A free gift
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House panel OKs affordable-housing tax bill
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – March 30, 2007 – A bill sponsored by Rep. Keith Fitzgerald (D-Sarasota) that aims to minimize property taxes for homeowners whose dwellings sit on land owned by a community land trust has received the approval of the House Government Efficiency and Accountability Council.
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Clinton wants lending reform
Clinton wants lending reform
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National affordable housing campaign kicks off
WASHINGTON – March 29, 2007 – Nine out of 10 Americans agree that providing affordable housing in their communities is important. Fewer than half of all Americans, however, believe that the nation’s current housing policy is on the right track to meet the nation’s housing needs, according to a recent poll released by a coalition of public, private and nonprofit industry groups, including the National Association of Realtors (NAR).
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Florida House takes up affordable housing measure
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – March 20, 2007 – Florida’s House Committee on Infrastructure is considering legislation proposed by its chairman, Rep. Mike Davis (R-Naples), that aims to build on affordable-housing programs approved last year. |
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