New Grants Help Nassau County Residents Afford Florida Mortgage Loans

Bernice Walker has a three-bedroom home to call her own.

Her new home was financed not through a traditional Florida home mortgage, but through a federal Community Development Block Grant, a housing program designed to help bring up to code or replace substandard housing.

According to the Florida Times-Union, County Commissioner Marianne Marshall stood on Walker’s porch Thursday as a contractor put the finishing touches on the home, including painting, putting up the bathroom mirror and ceiling fans. Once the electrical service is turned on, a certificate of occupancy will be issued.

“Where’s my screen door?” Walker asked.

Nassau County Grants Coordinator Eron Thompson reminded her this wasn’t a custom home. Just a basic home. Block Grant regulations are very strict. Anything outside of what the regulations allow must be furnished by the homeowner.

“I’ll get you a screen door,” Marshall promised.

Walker has been living with relatives for a year, since a contractor tore down her sub-standard home. The contractor put up part of the home but didn’t finish it.

Before last summer, the block grant program in Nassau County, nearby to the Jacksonville housing market, was administered through Jordan & Associates, a grant-writing and management firm from Orange Park.

However, the county took back administration of its block grant program, which helps provide affordable Florida mortgages to those with few other options.

Now, a contractor and subcontractors are going back to correct the problems and finish the homes. Six homes remain to be built of 20 homes funded, and there are warranty issues with nine others. Thompson said the last six houses in Northeast Florida will be ready for occupancy by next month.

That’s thanks in no small part to Builder’s Edge, a Fernandina Beach contractor handling finishing the homes and warranty issues with the other nine, she said.

Marshall is optimistic the block grant problems have been fixed.

“The board is very pleased with the way Eron has handled this and straightened this out. It was a mess and left a bad taste in everybody’s mouth,” Marshall said. “But now we’re glad we’re progressing. They are both wonderful programs and we have to find ways to make it work.”

The county’s State Housing Initiatives Partnership program committee, and both Community Development Block Grants and State Housing Initiatives Partnership figure into Nassau County’s affordable housing picture.

SHIP funds can be used by low-income and first-time home buyers to make a down payment, do emergency repairs and recover from disasters.

If the home owners stay in the house for 10 years, the Florida mortgage is forgiven, but if the home is sold before then, a portion must be repaid.

SHIP funding comes from the state as long as the county retains certain criteria. Annually, Nassau receives about $600,000 in SHIP funds, and its program is administered by the Northeast Florida Planning Council.

Last year, the County Commission increased the SHIP home loan amount from $15,000 to $40,000 because of rising home prices and Florida mortgages here.

Continue reading this article by the Florida Times-Union …