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HUD program
provides big discount for qualified buyers
Know
anyone who would like to buy a home for a 50 percent
discount? It’s hard to believe, but the U.S. Department
of Housing and Urban Development has a program that
allows homes to be sold at a 50 percent discount —
meaning a buyer could purchase a home listed for $100,000
for $50,000. The catch is that the buyer has to be a
teacher, law enforcement officer, firefighter or emergency
medical technician to qualify.
HUD’s
program, called Good
Neighbor Next Door, allows eligible buyers to receive
the discount if they purchase a single-family HUD home
in a designated revitalization area and live in it as
their sole residence for three years. After that, they
can sell the home and keep any profits. Qualified participants
do not have to be first-time homeowners although they
must not have owned any residential property for one
year prior to making an offer on a Good Neighbor home.
As
part of the three-year occupancy agreement, buyers must
sign a mortgage note for the discount amount. Once the
three years is up, HUD releases the “second”
mortgage obligation. If buyers fail to meet the three-year
agreement, HUD requires a prorated repayment of the
mortgage amount — 1/36 of the discount — for
each month short of the commitment.
Properties
available for the Good Neighbor Next Door program are
available on the Utah
Web page of Michaelson, Connor, & Boul, a management
company contracted by HUD. Any eligible properties will
be listed on Fridays under the “Special Programs”
section. No negotiations or offers for less than the
list price are allowed for these properties, and buyers
must use a HUD-registered real estate agent or broker.
If more than one person places a bid, the buyer is selected
at random. More information about how to become HUD-registered
agent is available on HUD’s
Web site.
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