Homeownership will soon be more affordable for several families in Connecticut’s northwest corner.
Pre-applications are being accepted for five affordable, prefabricated homes in Litchfield County. The homes are part of a partnership among the Litchfield County Center for Housing Opportunity and local housing organizations.
To qualify for the program, an eligible household must earn enough money to support a mortgage ranging between $250,000 and $280,000, but earn no more than Litchfield County’s Area Median Income.
For a two-person household to be eligible for the homeownership program, they can’t earn more than about $93,000 annually.
Eligible buyers should get pre-approved for a mortgage, according to Center Director Jocelyn Ayers.
“A lot of folks who have been renting, who are in this income bracket, you know, between, say, 60% of the area median and 100% of the area median just haven't seen themselves as ever being able to become homeowners,” Ayers said.
The program is geared toward families who may have never seen homeownership as a possibility, Ayers said. If the program is in high demand, another round of home ownership opportunities may come up.
“We can get some of these folks who want to be home buyers into homes, and that maybe we could potentially do another round of this, and more of the folks who aren't currently ready might be ready,” Ayers said.
The ten homes included in the program are spread among the towns of Salisbury, Cornwall, Norfolk, Washington and North Canaan.
While two homes on Perry Street in Salisbury and two on Town Street in Cornwall are no longer accepting applicants, the remainder are open for pre-applications and are expected to be ready for purchase in the fall.
The homes would be owned by the middle-income buyers, however, the land on which the homes sit will be owned by various groups facilitating the construction.
The groups include the Salisbury Housing Trust, Cornwall Housing Corporation, Foundation for Norfolk Living, Washington Community Housing Trust and Northwest Connecticut Habitat for Humanity.
Taxes on the properties will be based on the homes’ purchase prices, not the construction costs, according to Ginni Block, of the Cornwall Housing Corporation.
