AFFORDABLE HOUSING
Stackley Street Redevelopment

Affordable, safe, and decent housing are basic needs facing low to moderate income families.  So many low to moderate income families live paycheck to paycheck; consequently, families may become discouraged when trying to purchase a home if they are unable to afford the down payment and closing costs or need special financing.  As a result, low to moderate income families may be required to live in rental housing.  The City of Florence recognizes that home ownership can provide families a measure of security and control over their living situations that rental housing typically cannot provide.  As renters, low income families live with uncertainty from year to year regarding rent levels, control over property maintenance, and fear of eviction.  Home ownership can enhance personal wealth for low income families through increases in property values and gradual accumulation of equity as monthly installment payments reduce mortgage principal.  In addition, mortgage interest on a family’s principal residence can result in significant income tax write-offs, thus, increasing the percentage of income that a low income family may retain.

In response to the growing need for affordable housing, the City of Florence developed the Affordable Housing Program and formed partnerships with State Housing and BB&T.  The redevelopment of Stackley Street is an example of how the Affordable Housing Program provides home ownership opportunities for low to moderate income residents.  Stackley Street is located in a CDBG target in north Florence.  Before the redevelopment project, Stackley Street was a haven for illegal activity.  The City of Florence purchased six lots in the neighborhood to build new homes, cleared the lots, and through a grant from State Housing HOME Program offered $7500 in down payment assistance and $2500 in closing cost assistance to qualified applicants.  To be eligible for the program, applicants must meet specific requirements and receive bank approval.  For example, any family interested in buying a new home must qualify for the program based on the size of the family, credit history, and income stability.  If a family does meet the qualifications, an application is taken.  Based on credit history and low to moderate income qualifications, preliminary bank approval is given.  During this pre-application process, potential homeowners are given credit counseling.  Counseling consists of identifying credit problems and developing strategies to solve these problems.  The local lender will invite eligible applicants to submit a full application.

Once an applicant qualifies for the program, home plans may be chosen and contractors selected.  Home designs are approximately one thousand to thirteen hundred square feet with three bedrooms and one to two bathrooms.  Home designs depend on individual needs and secured financing.  Average construction costs for new homes do not exceed $60,000.  Ownership of the home is transferred to the new home owner upon closing.

The Stackley Street Redevelopment Project is unique because the City is providing a helping hand to citizens as opposed to a hand out; new homeowners must obtain a mortgage, live in the new house at least five years, and pay back the $7500 down payment assistance when the mortgage is satisfied.  The benefits of owner-occupied housing extend to the overall community since owner-occupied single family housing is more economically stable and physically attractive than comparable neighborhoods with a high percentage of rental housing.

The Stackley Street Redevelopment Project has revitalized a former drug and crime-infested neighborhood as new homes are built and homeowners reclaim their neighborhood.  The City of Florence is also making aesthetic changes to these neighborhoods including new street lighting, sidewalks, and landscaping.  In addition, small business residential contractors in the community are given the opportunity to participate in new construction.  All contractors are State and City licensed, bonded, and fully insured.

This outstanding program not only provides new homes to low to moderate income families, but gives families a sense of pride and control that comes with home ownership.  An additional benefit of the program is, in some cases, monthly housing payments for home owners may be less than the comparable monthly housing expenses of a rental unit, especially in tight rental markets.  The program’s success is evident among the six new homeowners who have benefited from the program.  For these new homeowners, the redevelopment of Stackley Street has turned the seemingly unattainable dream of affordable, safe, and decent home ownership into a reality.