Maricopa County's federal housing funds could drop

Maricopa County is seeking renewed federal funding for a program that helps low-income residents find affordable housing, but the focus of the program is expected to change amid tighter budgets.

Though the county's Human Services Department received about $10 million from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development for its Neighborhood Stabilization Program in 2009, less than half that amount - about $4.3 million - is available for the upcoming funding round the county applies for today.

And unlike in the past, when the county worked with community partners to buy homes in or near foreclosure, fixed them up, and put them up for sale or rent to low-income families, it now expects to use any new money it gets to partner with a developer to buy and manage multifamily rental housing.


The developer would own and manage the units. The county would monitor the project annually to see if it complies with the federal regulations, said Ursula Strephans, project manager.

So far, the county and six Valley cities have provided homebuyer assistance on more than 300 properties in the metro area, according to the local HUD office and the Arizona Department of Housing.

The county program generally focuses on West Valley cities and towns. Buckeye, El Mirage and Goodyear properties qualified for purchase with 2009 grant funds.

Of the 61 foreclosed properties the county purchased with that grant, 18 were repaired and put up for rent. An additional 43 were redeveloped to resell, of which 27 have been or are in the process of being resold, according to the Human Services Department.

Helping homeowners

The program is the only shot some people have at buying an affordable home.

For example, Bretta Huffman, 42, moves into her new Goodyear home this week thanks to the program. Her two-bedroom apartment was too crowded for her to live in with her 19-year-old son and 2-year-old niece, and her utility bills and rent were too high.

"(Without this program) I wouldn't have been able to be at a home," said Huffman, a school-bus driver. "I would still be in an apartment with my babies."

The house is spacious, and the county weatherizes all program homes, lowering utility costs for homeowners.

Another participant, Terry Bledsoe, 51, purchased a Buckeye home in December. He said it was difficult finding a real-estate agent who would sell him a reasonably priced home because he has a low income and once owed back child support.

Bledsoe, a security compliance officer for 4 Sons Food Stores, purchased a three-bedroom, two-bath house for $1,000 up front - $500 in escrow and $500 to close.

"If I can get a house, anyone can get a house," Bledsoe said.

Debate over program

Nonetheless, it was clear from discussions last week that the county's Board of Supervisors is torn over program goals.

Board Chairman Andy Kunasek expressed concern that the program was being used to artificially improve the housing market, and he questioned whether government should interfere with home values. The department is required to purchase properties at 99 percent of the market value but can price them affordably for those far below the area's median income.

"It might make it more affordable for them (homebuyers) in the short period, but I don't think it has the stabilizing effect on the market," Kunasek said.

But Supervisors Mary Rose Wilcox and Don Stapley said they felt that the program had an overall positive, stabilizing effect and that it helped improve neighborhoods by creating business opportunities and encouraging homeownership.

Human Services Department officials said the program's counseling to prospective homebuyers helps them avert risk in a volatile housing market.

Strephans said the department's goal is simple: "Where is our vulnerable population, and can we really use this money to shore some of them up?"

by Michelle Ye Hee Lee The Arizona Republic Mar. 1, 2011 12:00 AM




Maricopa County's federal housing funds could drop