Nonprofit builder says lower-income families who doubt the
prospect of homeownership should think again
Chris Bone – Staff Writer
cb***@************ch.com
GILROY
After single moms and cash-strapped couples get off work, they might be interested to learn that buying a home is not a ridiculous idea.
That is because Gilroy-based South County Housing wants to offer low-income, first-time homebuyers credit counseling, financial assistance and the opportunity to buy below-market-rate houses, all during a three-hour seminar downtown this evening.
But there is a catch: The referenced homes do not exist yet since the non-profit developer first wants to pair 500 families with 500 homes over the next five years. This is an unusual and seemingly backward first-step, according to SCH Communications and Fund Development Manager Jack Foley.
“What we are doing is unprecedented, I think, in the building industry – we want to tap into the ‘buyer pipeline’ out there, reach out to folks who want to buy but for one reason or another think they cannot,” Foley said. “Typically, we and other builders build homes and then go look for buyers. We think it’s a tremendous service to families to start preparing them for ownership even before the homes are built.”
This is the opposite process followed by most home-buying families trickling down from Silicon Valley.
Their regional interest has driven up the median cost for a local home to more than $630,000, according to SCH’s Web site, making homeownership unreasonable for many low-income families. But not with SCH’s help.
Since 1979, SCH has developed more than 2,000 affordable housing units, and 1,800 more on the way, spanning from multi-family apartment complexes to special needs housing facilities. This next round of houses to be discussed this evening will emphasize environmentally friendly construction, according to an SCH flyer, and allow potential home-owners to follow the process throughout.
Foley pointed to SCH’s experience, progress and plans as proof that curious buyers need not beware: “We can hook them up with credit counselors to repair their credit,” he wrote.
One example of SCH’s devotion to affordable communities is the downtown Cannery, which had been out of commission for almost a decade until SCH decided to start building mixed-use, mixed-income development to bolster the area.
Some of the units there could sell for nearly $400,000, but the non-profit knocked $150,000 of the listing price to accommodate lower-income families who want to live in and enjoy downtown, according to a SCH.
The skeptical and eager alike can see first-hand what SCH has done since tonight’s event will take place at the Cannery Welcome Center.
There will also be activities for children to enjoy while their parents learn the housing ropes, in English and Spanish, according to a SCH flyer advertising the event.
