Nehemiah Program

Making its way through the halls of our government is a bill to eliminate down payment assistance programs such as the Nehemiah Program. Nehemiah Corp. of America, a nonprofit organization was started a decade ago by Antioch Progressive Baptist Church in South Sacramento to help its lower-income members buy homes. The company has evolved into an urban developer with a 65 acre development called Township 9 just north of downtown Sacramento.

The Nehemiah Program is a signature Sacramento program that has helped nearly 300,000 lower-income families buy homes in the past decade. It appears Congress and President Bush will ban the decade-old down-payment assistance “gift” program as part of a larger housing bill.

The way the program helps low-income and often first time home buyers is by having the seller of the home “gift” down payment money to the buyer of the home. The funds are transferred through the Nehemiah Corp. This helps the new family get into the home.

On July 11, the Senate passed a bill that would eliminate the Nehemiah Program and if the House passes the bill, the President is expected to sign it.

There is some good news for first time home buyers in the bill; a federal tax credit for first-time home buyers purchasing homes before July of next year; and a real property tax deduction for non-itemizers. Other provisions in the bill will help existing home owners with costly subprime mortgages refinance with affordable Federal Housing Administration mortgages. I am usually not a advocate of refinancing but this is an exception that can make sense for some families.

Another significant change is making permanent the higher loan limits on , Fannie Mae, and Freddie Mac. Also included is $3.9 billion in anti-blight cash for communities across the country to buy vacant, foreclosed properties. This will help maintain the communities and help values for falling further.

Although the bill still needs the House of Representatives and the President need to approve the bill before it can become law, all indications are it will be approved by early next week.

I am still working on getting the details of the bill but if you have any questions please contact me and if I don’t have an answer I will work on getting one for you.

Return to Home Page from Nehemiah