- The City of Jackson says it's about halfway to its goal of "100 Homes".
- The ARPA funding that provides down payment assistance to buyers of the City's "100 Homes" must be used by end of 2026.
- The City's Community Development Director Shane LaPorte says it will hit that number by the end of the year.
- LaPorte says City Council will consider increasing the City's contribution to down payment assistance from $25,000 to $35,000.
If you've driven through Jackson, you've seen them popping up.
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"This is an opportunity for people to get into home ownership with a helping hand," says Shane LaPorte, Head of Jackson's Community Development, describing the City's "100 Homes" program — currently in its third and final year.
The goal is just as it sounds: 100 new homes in Jackson — an attempt by the City to fill in some of the vacant lots that it owns...
To, as LaPorte puts it, "recreate neighborhoods that had been decimated by blight....Our goal is to create affordable housing."
Housing that will hopefully become homes for new neighbors...and City taxpayers.
The houses look like the one you see behind me.
"It's a three bedroom, 1.5 bath. It's about 1250 sq ft." says LaPorte.
They go for $178,000 — with down payment assistance from the City. That down payment assistance has been $25,000. But there's a plan now to bump that up to $35,000.
"Hopefully, in February, that will go in front of City Council and hopefully they're going to give the affirmative on that increase," says LaPorte.
With 30 of the houses already built and another 23 in progress, LaPorte says the City will hit the 100 mark by the end of this year. That's the deadline for spending the ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act) funds that are being for the down payment assistance.
LaPorte says one of the biggest "coming soons" for the 100 Homes program is this vacant lot behind me just off of Griswold and Fourth.
"There will be 19 opportunities at that one location for somebody to get into a 100 Homes home there....Anyone of any age who can qualify for their mortgage through their own financial institution or one of the preferred providers — if they can get a mortgage, they can get into this product if they don't make more than the 120% AMI (Area Median Income)".
That's about $70,000 per year for a single individual.
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