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C H A P T E R 3 Universities Helping to Rebuild Neighborhoods One of the positive things about university involvement in the community is the culture of experimentation and the freedom to do it. Much of this chapter focuses on the most successful aspects of the HANDS program—community design and home ownership. This is the chronicle of what worked and what did not work in the physical redevelopment effort. It is also a record of unrealized dreams (i.e., development of vest-pocket parks). We will start with a discussion of how home ownership was encouraged and what was done to prepare potential home owners for their responsibilities. Home Ownership The HANDS program referred low-income residents with a demonstrated interest to the intensive home ownership program of the Housing Authority of Louisville. Interested families contacted the HANDS program to apply for participation in the program. Completed applications were reviewed, and appointments were scheduled for families to meet with counselors. A completed financial analysis was conducted to determine what might prevent a family from obtaining mortgage loan approval. Then a plan of action was designed specifically to meet a family’s particular need. Each family was placed in one of four groups on the basis of similar financial and credit characteristics. A counselor also prequalified a family to determine the house value it could afford, based on income and debt. Once a family, with the assistance of a counselor, resolved the identified problems (i.e., established a savings account showing adequate funds for a down payment, closing costs, and a reserve, sufficiently reduced debt load, improved credit standing, and acquired good money management skills), it was ready to be enrolled in the educational phase of the program. 69 The potentially qualified home buyers attended seven educational class lectures, which addressed every aspect of the home-buying process. Topics of the class included credit, basic home inspection, parts I and II, selecting a realtor and understanding a sales contract, mortgage financing and vocabulary, home owners insurance, loan application, and loan closing. Families continued to meet with counselors throughout the process to enhance budgeting skills, build reserve accounts for replacement items, and avoid foreclosure. They continued in this manner for six months, after receiving their Certificates of Program Completion. All graduates were allowed to reenter the program if the need arose. The HANDS program worked closely with the Housing Authority of Louisville in its conversion of the La Salle Public Housing Project to La Salle condominiums . In this successful, federally funded $7 million condominium conversion grant application, the Housing Authority of Louisville was able to cite the HANDS leadership, job, education, and home ownership training components as part of the match combination. This two-year rehabilitation project transformed the outdated, fifty-five-year old La Salle Place Public Housing Development into new condominiums, providing attractive and affordable homes for first-time, lowincome buyers. The development offered one-, two-, three- and four-bedroom homes, complete with new kitchens and baths. The homes feature central air, patios, wall-to-wall carpeting, major appliances, and dishwashers.Also offered are off-street parking and on-site playgrounds for children. Many of the homes have washer-dryer hookups, and others have on-site laundry rooms. Perhaps the best feature of the new La Salle Place condominiums was the purchase price. La Salle Place quickly sold 150 attractive, up-to-date, lowpriced housing units, which ranged in the mid-1990s from $18,000 for onebedroom units to $36,000 for four-bedroom, two-bath cottage units. These prices allowed households with very low annual incomes to qualify for home ownership. Monthly mortgage payments for a one bedroom were as low as $187 a month. Or, put another way, a two-person household working full time at minimum-wage jobs could afford these units. Ten years later, these units are still well maintained and attractive. Buyers must also be first-time home buyers . However, for the homeownership program to be a success, a multifaceted effort such as HANDS must be put into place (Stegman 1991; Rohe and Stegman 1992). One component of the HANDS program involved developing linkages with local banks and financial institutions so that residents had access to the best possible financing. As part of this strategy, a housing fair was organized for the Russell and La Salle housing developments to encourage African-American middle-class persons to move into these historic neighborhoods. Builders, bankers, and community leaders were brought together to help “reframe” Rus70...

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