il|e^Jortlanh ©bseruer
April I. 2009
Page A7
Hous
Elderly, Disabled to Keep Housing
Non-profit buys
Walnut Park
apartments
REACH Community Devel­
opment, a private non-profit
c o m m u n ity d e v e lo p m e n t
group, has purchased Walnut
Park Apartments at 5272 N.E.
Sixth Ave., saving the complex
for low-incom e fam ilies and
individuals.
Built in 1981, Walnut Park
is a 38-unit Section 8 building
for elderly and disabled resi­
dents. M ost o f its residents
have incomes under 30 per­
cent median family income or
$ 14,250, for an individual.
Walnut Park was in danger
of losing its rent subsidies at
the end of 2010. Now that it
ow ns the property, REACH
will work to preserve Walnut
photo by M ark W ashington /T he P ortland O bserver
Park's affordability.
A non-profit com m unity d evelo p m en t group h a s p u rch a sed the Walnut Park A partm ents, 5 2 7 2 N.E. Sixth Ave., saving
Walnut Park is a particular
th e com plex for low-income fam ilies a n d individuals.
asset for seniors because it is
housing options available for g e n trify in g n e ig h b o rh o o d ,
located less than a block from C enter on N ortheast M artin P ortland’s m inority elderly.
L
uther
King
Jr.
B
oulevard,
W
alnut
P
ark
is
one
o
f
a
seniors in the north and north- lo n g -tim e re sid e n ts, espe-
the
U rb an
L e a g u e ’s
which
caters
to
the
needs
o
f
h
an
d
fu
l
o
f
re
n
t-su
b
sid
iz
e
d
e
a st c o m m u n ity . In th is c ia lly sen io rs on fixed in-
M ulticultural Senior Services
com es, are being displaced
from the com m unity where
th e y h a v e liv e d a ll th e ir
lives.
REACH has secured financ­
ing from the Network for O r­
egon Affordable Housing and
is currently w orking on a c ­
quiring additional city and
s ta te sp o n s o rs . R E A C H ’S
property m anagem ent team
will operate the building in its
current condition while funds
are assem bled for a renova­
tion in 2010.
“It’s important to keep Wal­
nut Park affordable because
it’s a great location for seniors
with low income to easily ac­
cess services they need," said
Je ssica W oodruff, REACH
Housing Development Project
Manager. “Our future renova­
tio n s w ill im p ro v e the
building’s energy efficiency
and the safety and quality of
life for the residents.”
Since 2003, REACH has pre­
served the affordability of 327
units in six apartm ent build­
ings, including three in north
or northeast Portland.
HOPE offers Loan Assistance New Home Sales Tick Up
A program called HOPE
for H om eow ners is provid­
in g a n o th e r re s o u rc e to
struggling hom eowners.
U nder the program , bor­
rowers having difficulty pay­
ing their mortgages will be
eligible to refinance into Fed­
eral Housing Administration-
insured mortgages they can
afford.
F o r b o rro w e rs w ho r e ­
finance under H O PE, lend­
e r s w ill be r e q u ir e d to
"w rite dow n" th e size o f
the m ortgage to a m axim um
o f 90 percent o f the hom e's
n ew a p p r a is e d v a lu e . In
m any instances, lenders will
determ ine that such a reduc­
tion in principal will allow
them to avoid a costly fore­
closure, w hile helping bor­
row ers stay in their hom es.
B o rro w e rs a re s tro n g ly
e n c o u ra g e d to w o rk w ith
th e ir c u rre n t le n d e r to d e ­
te r m in e i f H O P E fo r
H o m e o w n e rs is th e r ig h t
program for them . L enders
should explore all options,
in c lu d in g
HOPE
fo r
H om eow ners, before issu ­
ing foreclosure notices.
T his volu n tary program
w ill serve as another loss
m itigation tool that can be
used to help fam ilies keep
their homes.
F o r m ore in fo rm a tio n ,
c o n ta c t y o u r le n d e r o r a
U.S. Housing and Urban D e­
v e lo p m e n t
c o u n s e lin g
agency by visiting HUD.gov
or calling 1-888-995-HOPE.
EAST PORTLAND
HOMEOWNERSHIP FAIR
W ELCOM
a
■
ChàoO ón Qui VP
Bienvenidos
ä
-----ß o fjp rn
r io x a n o B a T b
Saturday, April 18th, 2009
10:00 am to 2:00 pm 4 »
Kelly E lem entary School
9030 SE C ooper St., P ortland
An increase in residential
home sales in February sug­
gests a long-awaited improve­
ment in the housing market,
U.S. Secretary of Housing and
Urban Development Secretary
Shaun Donovan said Thurs­
day.
Sales of both new and ex­
isting homes rose in February
for the first time in more than
six months while home prices
are starting to stabilize.
“Although there will be many
ups and downs in the coming
months, this news should rein­
force the importance of the steps
we have already taken to stabi­
lize the housing market and
strengthen our economy, includ­
ing measures that have contrib­
uted to the nearly the lowest
mortgage rates in decades and
the $8,000 tax credit for new
hom ebuyers included in the
American Recovery and Rein­
vestment Act,” Donovan said.
“Stabilizing the housing market
will help address the problems
at the root of our overall eco­
nomic weakness and eventually
start to contribute to economic
growth and job creation."
Q w e s t? ^
right speed,
right price,
right here
Free raffle for a $4,000 home buyer's
assistance grant (w orkshop required, see b elow *)
• Home Buyer and Home Owner workshops
(Vietnamese, Russian, Spanish, Cantonese, and Mandarin interpreters available)
• Free Burgerville lunch, youth activities, and
raffle for prizes
• Information on community organizations &
resources
• Realtors, lenders, home buying counselors,
and businesses sharing their products and
services
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¿Español? 1 800-763-6573
*For grant rules & more information, visit www.rosecdc.org or
call Arnie Diffenauer at 503-788-8052 x105
Hosted by the Lents Homeownership Initiative Partners:
ROSE Community Development &
’ tsô «
Kelly SUN Community School
Top Sponsors: Portland D evelopm ent Commission, Bureau of Housing and Com m unity
D evelopm ent, Standard TV & Appliance, Burgerville, Univision, and
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