Documents that must accompany your application:

1)               Most recent four (4) weeks worth of payroll stubs showing year to date earnings for all members in the household (if self employed, provide three (3) months worth of ledger books or accounting ledgers).

2)               Last two years (2011 & 2010) signed complete Federal & State Income Fax Returns with all schedules and W2’s for all members in the household.

3)               Bank books or latest bank statements for checking and savings accounts for the last two (2) months for all members in the household.

4)               Most recent statements of any installment payments (including but not limited to child support, automobile loans, personal loans, student loans, credit cards, medical payments, etc) for all members in the household.

5)               Proof of any other income (including but not limited to child support, social security, SSI, social security disability, pensions, veterans benefits, education, compensation and unemployment payments, etc) for all members in the household.

6)               Proof of all asset income (including but not limited to IRA’s, 401K’s, stocks, bonds, CD’s, high interest bearing savings accounts, etc) for all members in the household.

7)               A photo ID(s) must be presented and/or copied for all adults in the household at the time of the application.

8)               Copies of social security cards for all members in the household.

9)               Copies of birth certificates for all children in the household.

10)           Signed TRW Credit Report Request Form by all adults in the household (at the end of application).

11)           Application fee of $40.00.

Return completed application (which is included at the end of this packet) with all necessary documents listed above as soon as possible as funds are limited.  The fee is non-refundable.

 A.        HOMEOWNERSHIP PROGRAM SUMMARY:

Snow Belt Housing Company, Inc. (SBHCI) has received a First Time Homebuyer Program award from the North Country HOME Consortium (HOME) for the purpose of providing the opportunity of home ownership to income eligible households (households who make 80% or under of the HUD Median Income for Lewis County.  Homes purchased through this program must be existing single-family homes anywhere in the County of Lewis.  Single and/or doublewide mobile homes are not eligible for purchase assistance.  Priority will be given to large families, single parent households, and households with special needs.

There is a five (5) to ten (10) year affordability/residency requirement if you obtain a home through this program.  The grant is transferable to another income eligible applicant.  This is enforced by a Note and Mortgage filed with the Lewis County Clerk. 

This handbook will explain the program and how it should work.  It will also help interested households decide if they are eligible for the program and if it can work for them.  This handbook is meant to be a guide to the program, not a definitive presentation of the program’s policies.  Questions concerning the program should be directed to:  Snow Belt Housing Company, Inc., 7500 South State Street, Lowville, NY  13367 – Phone 376-2639.

To apply, fill out the application that is enclosed at the end of this handbook.  You must answer ALL the questions on the application and return it to Snow Belt Housing Company, Inc. with the required documentation.  You may bring your application with the original documentation to SBHCI’s office where copies can be made for you or you can send in your application with the copies of all the required documentation.

B.                 HOW TO DETERMINE YOUR INCOME:

For purposes of determining income, we will use anticipated annual income for the current year based upon the income information provided.  We will need documentation from the last two (2) tax years as well to determine wage history.

By your submission of an application to Snow Belt Housing Company, Inc. (SBHCI) for a North Country HOME Consortium (HOME) Program and the signatures at the end of the application, you are authorizing SBHCI to verify any and all information contained within the application.

The HUD Income Guidelines for people making 80% or under of the Median Income of Lewis County, adjusted for family size, are as follows:      Current Lewis County Median Family Income:  $51,200

Your gross income must not exceed these limits for the size of your household to be eligible for the program.

INCOME INCLUSIONS:

1.         All wages and salaries, overtime pay, commissions, fees, tips, bonuses, other compensation for any and all employment services (before any payroll deductions).

2.         Net business or farm income.  (Net business or farm losses and depreciation will not be deducted from other sources of income when calculating total household income.)

3.         Interest, dividends, and any other net income of any kind from real or personal property. 

4.         All gross periodic payments received from Social Security, annuities, insurance policies, retirement funds, pensions, alimony, child support, interest payments, unemployment and worker’s compensation, disability, death benefits and other similar types of periodic receipts.

5.         All regular pay, special pay, and allowances of a member of the Armed Forces (whether or not living in the dwelling) who is head of the family, spouse, or other person who dependents are residing in the unit.

INCOME EXCLUSIONS:

1.         Income from employment of children (including foster children) under the age of 18.

2.         Payments received from the care of foster children.

3.         Lump-sum additions to family asset (including but not limited to inheritances, insurance policy, death benefit payments, settlement for personal or property losses, and medical expense reimbursements, etc)

4.         Income of a live-in aide (will require medical statement from physician that live in aide is required)

5.         Amounts of educational scholarships paid directly to the student or to the educational institution, and amounts paid by the government to a veteran in meeting the costs of attending school.

6.         The special pay to a household member serving in the Armed Forces who is exposed to hostile fire.

7.         Temporary, nonrecurring, or sporadic income (including gifts).

8.         Lump sum payments of SSI and Social Security benefits.

9.         The value of the allotment provided to an eligible household under the Food Stamp Act of 1977.

10.     Any earned income tax credit.

C.        HOMEOWNERSHIP COUNSELING

Qualified applicants will be required to attend a Homebuyer Education Course as a contingent of receiving a grant from HOME.  At the end of the course you will receive a certificate and/or card of completion that will allow you to access special programs offered by local area banks.  If necessary, SBHCI can provide you with information as to where to take this course.

D.             CHOOSING A HOME

If you are found to be eligible for the program, you will be given an award letter that states you are eligible for a Grant/Deferred Loan and the dollar amount of the Principal, Interest, Taxes and Insurance (PITI) that we feel you can manage based upon the information you provided to us.

You may visit a Real Estate Agent/Broker, or you may decide to ride around and look at the houses with FOR SALE signs on them and then check with the agency/broker for an asking price.  You may know a homeowner who wants to sell their home or you might hear of an eligible home for sale in some other way.  You may also want to check the classified ads in the local papers.  No home with a sales price over $95,000 may be purchased through this program.  You must always remember that there is an ASKING PRICE and there is a SELLING PRICE.  We will always advise you to strive to make an offer on a home at the lowest price possible.

If you do find a home that you think you can afford and fits our program, do not sign a purchase offer unless you get permission from Snow Belt Housing Company, Inc. or in the purchase offer it states “contingent or based upon on Snow Belt Housing Company, Inc.’s inspection.”

No home with electric heat will be allowed in this program.  This energy conservation measure will save you money with your heating bills.  All homes must be vacant or owner-occupied.

When you find a home and you have reported it to SBHCI, we will then arrange for an Inspector from CW Augustine, Inc. to do a HUD Housing Quality Standards (HUD HQS) inspection to determine what work must be done to bring the home up to HUD standards.  The Inspector from CWAI will do a work summary of all the failed items and an estimate of what the improvements will cost.  This work will determine whether or not you have a feasible project.

If your home is over 50 years old and/or has historic features, a picture of your proposed Project will be submitted to the NYS Historic Preservation Office for their review and comments.  If they make any comments, we must address them also.

E.                 ELIGIBLE IMPROVEMENTS:

When we talk about improvements to your proposed project, we are talking about items that failed on the Inspector’s HUD HQS form.  We are not talking about any of the following work: 

REHABILITATION DOES NOT INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING:

          Landscaping                                                              Fireplaces

          Blacktopping driveways                                               Wodstoves

          Washer or dryer hook ups                                           Slate roofs or cedar shake roofs

          Air conditioners                                                           Window walls

          Gutters and downspouts                                               Room partitions or Room additions

          Skylights                                                                      Fixing Dishwashers

          Luxury items (swimming pools, saunas, whirlpools, etc) Garages

          Finishing off rooms                                                       Moving house to a new foundation(s)

F.                 BANK COMMITMENT

If you have a feasible project, you will be directed to a participating bank that has agreed to participate in this program and has special mortgage programs to help you finance your project.  The bank may require you to pay up-front for the appraisal and the bank’s credit check.  If the credit check indicates that you may have a problem in obtaining a mortgage commitment, the bank may be able to help you through the problem.  If you receive a mortgage commitment, the appraisal fee and credit check fee that you paid will be credited towards the closing costs.  Closing costs are an eligible project cost, depending on how much of a mortgage reduction and improvements grant are needed for your project.

The mortgage commitment you receive from the bank will be for an amount that that the principal, interest, taxes and insurance can be paid for with 30% of your gross annual salary.  This is the amount that is allowed by almost all programs and financial institutions.  This amount and all the rest of your debt payments may not exceed 38% of your gross annual salary.  As listed on the cover page, you must provide us with any statements of debt payments or loans you have.  You will need to provide these items to the bank that will finance the principle portion of your new home.  All your debts should show up on the credit check done by the bank.  If you have a high amount of debt payments per month, chances are that you may not qualify for this program.

The amount of the grant will be determined by an analysis of your income, your debt payments and the purchase price of the home, plus any improvements.  Income eligibility is not the sole determining factor.

The grant amount will be adjusted as needed so that an applicant will not be paying more than 38% of their total monthly gross income for all debts.  The grant amount is, therefore, a flexible amount, but it will not exceed $30,000.  Please understand if the house you wish to purchase is affordable at your current income level, you may only be eligible for closing cost assistance.

Upon receiving a mortgage commitment, you will need to obtain at least three bid estimates from eligible contractors for the work described in CW Augustine Inspector’s Work Summary.  A contractor is qualified to do the work when he can provide SBHCI with a Certificate of Insurance showing that they have a minimum of $600,000 in liability insurance and that they pay the statutory amounts for Worker’s Compensation and Disability for any and all employees.  The applicant must accept the lowest bid from the contractor’s submissions.  This work does not affect your mortgage commitment in any way, but must be reflected in the bank’s appraisal.  No cosmetic work may be included in the work summary.

Once a bank closing takes place and the applicant is the new homeowner, the applicant (new homeowner) will sign the contract and the improvement work can be started.  The applicant may or may not be able to move into the home while the work is in process, but in almost every case the home will be able to be occupied shortly after the closing.  Do not give your present landlord any notice to leave the home you are now residing in until we know when the closing for the property you are purchasing will take place, and how long the improvements will take, as well as knowing if you can occupy the new property while the improvements are taking place.

During the period that the improvements work is underway, the CWAI Inspector will inspect the work approximately on a weekly basis.  When the project is approximately half way completed, the contractor can request an inspection for 50% payment of the project and again when it is 100% completed.  You must remember that the work for the improvements is between you and the contractor.  During the work, if you find that something is not being done correctly, you should speak to the contractor.  If the problem cannot be resolved, call the Rehabilitation Coordinator at SBHCI or the Inspector at CWAI to discuss the situation.  When the work is completed to the satisfaction of the owner, SBHCI, and CWAI, we will issue funds for you to sign off of for the contractor.

G.                AFFORDABILITY/RESIDENCY PERIOD

Under the regulations of this program there is a residency/affordability period, which states that the buyer must use the property as his/her principle place of residence.  If the property is sold during the affordability period, it will be accomplished in a manner that will allow the seller to receive a “Fair Return” on their investment, while ensuring that the property will be “affordable” to the new purchaser.  The affordability/residency period is five (5) to ten (10) years from the date of project completion, to be based on a declining term.  If the home is sold during the affordability/residency period, the seller will be responsible for the repayment of all PROGRAM FUNDS.  If the Market Value, at the time of the sale, is less than the original Market Value, the recapture of the PROGRAM FUNDS may be waived.

The only occurrence that will prematurely end the affordability period is a property foreclosure by the first mortgage holder.

When you submit an application to SBHCI for a Grant, you will be asked to sign a TRW Credit Check verification form.  This TRW will be reviewed with you to appraise your credit history and to get an indication of your chances of obtaining a mortgage commitment.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call Snow Belt Housing Company, Inc. at 376-2639 or come to the office at 7500 South State Street, Lowville NY 13367.

Cheryl L. Shenkle-O’Neill – Executive Director

Snow Belt Housing Company, Inc.