DALLAS, July 6, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- An $80,000 Affordable Housing Program (AHP) grant will assist 10 Jackson, Mississippi-area families with down payments on new, energy efficient homes.
The AHP grant was made available by the Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas (Bank), through BankPlus, one of its members in Jackson.
The Mid-South Community Development Corporation will use the AHP funds in the development of the Harmony Estates subdivision in the Georgetown community of Jackson, to assist first-time, very low- and low-income homebuyers with down payment assistance. The subdivision eventually will consist of 51 homes.
"There's a lot of deterioration of houses in many communities, and we feel that this development will help to reverse the deterioration of homes," said Derek Lane, Executive Director of The Mid-South CDC. "This grant is very important to the project. It's the difference between providing an affordable project for families, versus offering a project that is outside of their price range."
Mark Ouellette, Vice President and Director of Affordable Housing at BankPlus, said BankPlus and Mid-South CDC have been talking about this project for more than two years. He added that AHP grants are crucial to helping families afford homes.
"In today's market, the availability of down payments for low- to moderate-income borrowers is very hard to come by," he said. "If we are going to continue helping families become homeowners, we must identify sources to help them with down payments. In my seven years as director of Affordable Housing (at BankPlus), the Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas has been the number one source for us to find down payment assistance for our low- to moderate-income first-time homebuyers."
Each year, the Bank returns 10 percent of its profits to the communities served by member institutions in the form of AHP grants issued through its member financial institutions. In 2009, the Bank has awarded $5.4 million to projects within its five-state District, including nearly $1.3 million to projects in Mississippi, resulting in the creation or renovation of 136 housing units in the state.
About the Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas
The Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas is one of 12 district banks in the FHLBank System created by Congress in 1932. The Bank, with total assets of $68.7 billion as of March 31, 2009, is a member-owned cooperative that supports housing and community development by providing competitively priced loans and other credit products to more than 900 members and associated institutions in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico and Texas. For more information, visit the Bank's web site at fhlb.com.
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