Hundreds of families along the Connecticut shoreline are getting some help to own a home through a down payment program. The program, called HomeLIFT, offers a $15,000 head start for eligible buyers.
“There was a time where I didn’t think I could ever be a homeowner," said Kym McKoy, a mother of three who is now under contract to purchase her first home in New Haven.
“Just a sense of knowing that this is mine," said McKoy. "I accomplished something greater than what I thought I could accomplish.”
McKoy said she would never have been able to go through this process on her own.
Luckily, she said, she does not have to go it alone.
She is in line to be one of 219 eligible homebuyers who will receive a $15,000 Wells Fargo HomeLIFT grant, which goes toward a down payment on a home in East Haven, West Haven or New Haven.
“If you’re thinking about moving to New Haven, East Haven or West Haven in the next few months, this is great time to do it,” Joe Kirk, president of the New York and Connecticut region for Wells Fargo, said.
Local
To be eligible, a prospective homebuyer's income must not exceed 120 percent of the area's median income.
For a family of four, Kirk said, it equates to about $100,000. They buyer must live in the home as their primary residents for five years and also complete a homebuyer's workshop on Aug. 28 and 29 at the Omni Hotel in New Haven.
“It’s making it possible for people to take charge to build equity and to be part of a community where they have a solid investment,” said James Paley, of the Neighborhood Housing Services of New Haven.
To learn more about the HomeLift program and to register for the homebuyer's workshop, click here.
