Fullerton Offers Homes to Police at Half Price

With a three-year commitment and $100 down, police officers now can buy homes in this city for half price.

The City Council on Tuesday decided to enroll Fullerton in a federal program aimed at encouraging officers to buy homes in the cities they serve.

Dubbed the “Officer Next Door,” the Department of Housing and Urban Development program offers police officers across the nation the chance to buy foreclosed properties in troubled areas where a police presence can make a difference. The buyers get 50% off the appraised value of the houses and need only put $100 down.

In exchange, the officers must agree to live in the properties for at least three years.

Like officers across the county, most of Fullerton’s police live in isolated suburbs or outlying communities in neighboring counties.

Bringing them closer to the areas they patrol would benefit the city, Mayor Don Bankhead said.

“A police officer living in areas of high crime would help deter the crime,” he said. “It would strengthen the neighborhoods, and help them set up Neighborhood Watch groups. It would encourage more people to get involved.”

The homes must be in areas where crime is higher than the average countywide.

In La Habra, which also is participating, Police Chief Steven H. Staveley said the program allows officers to buy fixer-uppers “and make repairs and, maybe, turn around a street or neighborhood that just needs a little stability.”

Besides, he said, “a police officer is a police officer 24 hours a day, and just having them in our neighborhoods can prevent some types of crimes.”

In La Habra, the most crime-ridden area is the central part of town. In Fullerton, city officials said, 71% of the crime is committed in the south side, which is bordered by Chapman Avenue, the Riverside Freeway, the Orange Freeway and Magnolia Avenue.

The one-year pilot program was launched by President Clinton last summer. Los Angeles signed up in September. More recently, Santa Ana and San Juan Capistrano joined.

As of Tuesday, one Fullerton officer and one La Habra officer were in the process of buying a home through the program, which is designed to help at least 1,000 officers nationwide become homeowners.

A similar state program also received endorsement Tuesday by the Fullerton City Council. Called “Put a Cop on the Block,” it offers officers a down payment grant of up to 20% of the purchase price of a home. The home must be located in places considered economically distressed but with potential for revitalization or in redevelopment areas.

The five-year pilot program requires that the purchasing police officer live in the house for at least 10 years. In addition, the officers and their families must earn salaries below the county average to qualify.

Because of its restrictions, city officials said they expect that more will be interested in the Officer Next Door program.