VALDOSTA — Opening doors for potential homeowners is the purpose of a weekend housing fair.
The Housing Resource Fair is being hosted from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Saturday by Housing Resource Solutions and the Lowndes County branch of the University of Georgia Cooperative Extension Office. The fair will be held at the Lowndes County Civic Center, 2102 E. Hill Ave.
The event is free to the public.
The idea of the fair is to bring community partners together in helping educate the public on housing opportunities, said Kelley Thomas, housing specialist and owner of Housing Resource Solutions.
“This is something they cannot afford to miss,” she said.
There is a large gap between affordable housing, housing programs that are available and people who need to be connected to those resources, she said.
The housing fair is an effort to provide citizens information on affordable rental housing, the homeownership process, first-time homebuyer down payment programs and incentives (including the first-time homebuyer tax credit), affordable new construction housing and foreclosure prevention information.
“This is the first time we’ve done something like this of this magnitude and of this level,” Thomas said.
The housing fair will allow people to gain information on affordable rental housing, she said.
A representative from the Valdosta Housing Authority will be on hand to talk about the application process and eligibility requirements for residency within the authority.
There will also be discussions on affordable rental housing for the elderly, Thomas said.
Homeownership will be a topic of discussion, with information on various programs, grants, incentives and the importance of home inspections.
People will learn about down payments, the closing process and the purpose of a Realtor, Thomas said.
Programs like Dream Valdosta, USDA incentives and the Georgia Dream Program will be discussed.
Habitat for Humanity will discuss its programs and education classes on becoming a homebuyer, she said.
The Lowe’s Katrina Cottage will be presented as an additional avenue of affordable housing.
The cottage is perfect for small lots and can be built for about $70,000, Thomas said.
The Lowe’s Katrina Cottage was designed by Marianne Cusato, after Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast.
The concept of the cottage is a small, permanent home designed as an alternative to the FEMA trailer. Dream Valdosta Homeownership workshops and classes are offered each month by the City of Valdosta, the Georgia Department of Community Affairs, the Georgia Dream Program and various DCA certified agencies within Valdosta.
The Georgia Dream Homeownership Program helps low to moderate income families and individuals purchasing homes by offering fixed, low-interest rate mortgage loans.
Presenters will include Habitat for Humanity, the Valdosta Housing Authority, UGA and Fort Valley State University Cooperative Extension Program, the City of Valdosta, Georgia Department of Community Affairs, USDA-Rural Development, D and E Group, Premier Home Inspection, Coleman Talley Law Firm, Housing Resource Solutions, Lowe’s Home Improvement of Valdosta, Wells Fargo Home Mortgage, American Realty of Valdosta and Colonial Bank.
For more information, call Housing Resource Solutions at (229) 257-0318.
On the Web:
www.dca.state.ga.us/ housing/homeownership/index.asp
www.lowes.com/katrinacottage
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Fair to focus on affordable housing
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