With the Tampa Bay Area continuing to make national headlines for its explosive growth in housing costs, St. Petersburg and Mayor Ken Welch this week announced plans to alleviate the financial burden for locals. Significant changes to three homeownership programs will help more people buy homes or repair them, as well as lead to an increase in affordable housing stock.
The focal point of the plans is an increase to assistance or incentives for its programs, while also raising the level of debt forgiveness on assistance. The affected areas are the city’s Down Payment Assistance, Homeowner Rehabilitation Assistance, and South St. Petersburg CRA Developer Incentive Program – Land Acquisition Incentive programs.
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“Increasing access to affordable and workforce housing is a top priority in my administration,” Welch said in the announcement. “These changes will allow prospective home buyers to access additional assistance becoming first-time homeowners and existing homeowners to access needed assistance improving their homes. The changes will also incentivize developers to build attainable housing for essential employees such as teachers, nurses, firefighters and police officers.”
Three programs offer assistance and incentives to buyers and sellers alike
The Down Payment Assistance Program has experienced perhaps the largest change in benefits, a program that provides money to first-time homebuyers for down payments. The city is increasing the maximum amount of available assistance from $40,000 to $60,000 and allowing full forgiveness on the assistance for those earning at or below 80% average median income after 10 years of continued occupancy in the home.
Previously, program participants earning below 80% AMI had to repay half the assistance, and those earning above 80% were required to pay back the full amount. Now, those earning above 80% AMI will receive half-forgiveness on the assistance after 10 years of continued occupancy.
St. Pete’s Homeowner Rehabilitation Assistance program currently provides up to $45,000 to households in the extremely low-income to moderate-income range. Previously, the program required up to 50% reimbursement for that assistance over 15 years. Now, the city is increasing the maximum assistance to $60,000 and will provide full forgiveness for the assistance to households earning at or below 80% AMI after 10 years of continued occupancy.
Incentives for developers tied to single-family homes
Changes to the South St. Petersburg CRA Developer Incentive Program – Land Acquisition Incentive are centered around expanding assistance for developers who will construct affordable single-family homes within the South St. Petersburg CRA.
Currently, developers receive a direct $10,000 incentive for building and selling a new home in the area to a buyer at or below 120% AMI, and that is being raised to $15,000 if the buyer was already a resident renter within the CRA. A new incentive will now also reimburse the developer for up to half the land acquisition cost, up to $40,000, if the developer sells the new single-family home to a buyer at or below 80% AMI.
“This is just one of many ways our administration is prioritizing intentional equity to tackle challenges,” Welch said, “and we look forward to continued progress.”
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