Downpayment Assistance for Home Buyers

Posted at 11:44 AM, Aug. 7, 2008

THANK GOODNESS FOR POSITIVE NEWS!!

It's been a busy week! Seller Down Payment Assistance Programs were eliminated by legislation and signed by President Bush on July 30, 2008. July 31, 2008, bill H.R. 6694 was introduced and sponsored by U.S. Rep. Al Green (TX-09).

The bill would remedy a harmful provision in the new housing law which limits homeownership opportunities for low and middle-income Americans. The legislation is co-sponsored by U.S. Representatives Gary Miller (CA-42), Maxine Waters (CA-35), and Christopher Shays (CT-4) and reauthorizes and reforms charitable downpayment assistance funded in part by sellers, which has helped over one million families and individuals become homeowners since 1999.

Congratulations! WE DID IT. More than 32,000 Americans have called on Congress and the Bush Administration to preserve charitable downpayment assistance over the past year through phone calls, letters, and emails. They join a broad coalition of supporters, including the National Association of Homebuilders, the Labor Council for Latin American Advancement, and the U.S. Conference of Mayors, the Congressional Black Caucus, and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus.

If you haven't yet, I still ENCOURAGE you to visit www.getdownpayment.com and let your voice be heard.

Read More at Ameridream.org. Charitable downpayment assistance funded in part with seller participation has allowed homeownership to grow without using taxpayer dollars. To date, more than one million families and individuals have utilized this downpayment assistance, generating nearly $10 billion in home equity for those families. These working families qualify for FHA insured loans in every respect, but are unable to save the needed downpayment. AmeriDream has provided more than 250,000 gifts to aspiring homeowners, approximately 80% of whom were first-time homebuyers. AmeriDream also has helped educate 60,000 homebuyers through homebuyer education courses, helped 1,200 homeowners retain their homes when confronted with mortgage difficulties, and committed over $30 million to affordable housing development in local communities.