HFA News

This morning, Lt. Governor Anthony G. Brown, joined by Department of Housing and Community Development Secretary Raymond A. Skinner, Maryland Bankers Association President and CEO Kathleen Murphy, Prince George’s County Association of Realtors President-Elect Joanne Darling, members of the Maryland Bankers Association and Maryland Association of Realtors, will hold a press announcement to launch a new homeownership initiative under the Maryland Mortgage Program to provide $100 million in mortgage loans to homebuyers in 10 counties expected to see significant growth due to the U.S. Military’s Base Realignment And Closure (BRAC) activities. They will also announce the lowering of statewide Maryland Mortgage Program interest rates to 4.5 percent.

Governor Jennifer M. Granholm today announced that the Michigan State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA), along with banks, credit unions and nonprofit counseling agencies, will launch a statewide program to help eligible Michigan homeowners avoid foreclosure by participating in the state's new $154.5 million Helping Hardest-Hit Homeowners Fund.

Governor Chet Culver announced today that 71 communities throughout Iowa will receive a combined total of $35 million to enhance water infrastructure in their communities. The funds are from the Water Quality Financial Assistance Program, and communities with populations of less than 10,000 were eligible to apply. The program is a part of the Culver/Judge I-JOBS initiative.

The Iowa Finance Authority (IFA) Board of Directors recently approved $200,500 in grants to fives organizations to advance affordable housing opportunities in Ames, Indianola, Ogden, Williamsburg and Woodbine. The funding is made available through the State Housing Trust Fund’s Project-Based program. The program provides financing for the development of affordable single-family and multifamily housing units.

The Lake Region Corporation, a nonprofit Devils Lake organization dedicated to providing residential services for people with disabilities, recently received funding for some essential repairs through the North Dakota Housing Finance Agency's Rural Rehabilitation Loan Program.

North Dakota Housing Finance Agency's Planning and Housing Development Division Director Jolene Kline was recognized for her work as a Low Income Housing Tax Credit program administrator at the National Council of State Housing Agency's Annual Housing Credit Conference in Chicago on June 22-25.

The state of Maine today came a step closer to being able to make money from its home weatherization project. MaineHousing -- formerly the Maine State Housing Authority -- announced that its method for measuring the carbon savings that result from weatherizing a home, received initial approval from an independent third party validator. This means it will be possible to quantify the carbon credits created by the weatherization effort, and once final approval is granted, Maine will be able to generate revenue by selling them.

The Industrial Commission of North Dakota has approved an increase in the income limits for the North Dakota Housing Finance Agency’s (NDHFA) FirstHome™ program.