GLENDALE : Program Will Help Residents Buy Homes

The city of Glendale has set aside $5 million to assist low- and moderate-income first-time home buyers, officials announced Monday.

City officials initiated the program--slated to help individuals and families buy 39 homes during the next several years--because of a growing concern about the renter-to-owner ratio in Glendale.

About 60% of the city’s residents live in rental housing, said May Ann Plumley, chairwoman of Glendale’s Housing Authority.

The program, operated in conjunction with Coast Federal Bank, requires first-time home buyers--categorized as those who haven’t owned a home in three years--to provide a 7% down payment on a home, condominium or townhome.

The city will use its funds, taken from an account derived from property tax revenues on city redevelopment projects, to bring the price of a home down into an affordable range and provide interest-free second mortgages, said Beth Stochl, senior administrative analyst.

For example, if a potential home buyer wanted to purchase a $175,000 townhome, the city would bring the purchase price down to $150,000 by providing an interest-free $25,000 second mortgage.

The home buyer would be required to make a 7% down payment on the $150,000 purchase price and make payments on the first mortgage to Coast Federal Bank.

Payments to the city on the second mortgage would not be required for five years under program guidelines.

Interest rates on the Coast Federal Bank mortgage will be determined according to a nationwide index, Stochl said.

The program requires that the maximum purchase price for a condominium or townhome not exceed $200,000; single-family homes must not be listed for over $250,000.

To qualify, applicants must have income less than $58,000 for a family of four.

Couples can earn no more than $46,350 a year, and individuals are eligible if they earn no more than $40,550 annually.

For more information, or to sign up for a seminar explaining requirements for the first-time home buyer program, call the city’s Housing Department at 548-3936.