CALL TO ACTION: Save Down Payment Assistance Programs by supporting HR 6694

August 24, 2008
By: Angela Elliott, Active Rain

If any of you have used AmeriDream or Nehemiah Down Payment Assistance Programs to help your buyers get into a home, you know how excellent the programs are, how easy to use they are and how they can often make or break the difference between your customer being able to purchase a home or not.

10/01/2008 is TOO LATE. Please take a moment to support H.R. 6694 and fight to save down payment assistance. In a market like this, we need all the help we can get to assist good qualified buyers into getting into a home. These down payment assistance programs are TOOLS for your toolbox and not to be abused. Only qualifying buyers are eligible to use these programs and they are an excellent source for your first time home buyers.

Down payment assistance programs are not just a tool for buyers! Your sellers can stand apart from the crowd by offering to make a contribution to the DPA program on the buyer's behalf at closing. Over 1 million people have become homeowner's with these programs! Offering a $7500 first-time buyer tax credit as part of an economic stimulus package and taking away DPAs sends a mixed message! When the real estate market is depressed, we need all the buyer incentives we can get to encourage growth and repair during these fragile times. Whether you're a buyer that used the program, a seller that contributed to a DPA, or someone in the real estate industry, please take a moment to save DPAs.

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For additional information, please contact Shelley Mitchell, smitchell@nehemiahcorp.org, 916-231-1999.

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