RECENT STORIES

Two first-class stamps required for Jeffco ballots ( Julie Story )
Home video studio launches program for seniors ( Kari Larese )
Greer named realtor of the year ( Laurie Anderson )
Board of Education names new member ( Jeffco Public Schools )
Blotter: Practical joke not funny to Westy student ( YourHub.com )

share a story | more postings »

YourHub.com \\ Westminster \\ Stories \\ Business \\ General Business

Homeownership: Now is an opportune time

e-mail to a friend | print this | link to this

Contributed by: Tanya Caughey on 6/19/2008

Buying a home can be full of twists and turns.

It can be wholly rewarding - or detrimental if we consider that in the past two years, Colorado consistently has ranked among the nation's top states in foreclosures.

In Colorado and across the nation, more and more homeowners couldn't pay their monthly mortgages. That was because for a while, deceiving home loans were easy to get and adjustable rate mortgages reset way beyond homeowners' means.

Opportunely, there now are more protections in place for today's homebuyers - from secure government policies to safer loan products to expert, certified homeownership counselors.

On-the-ground housing experts in local communities and lenders who often are hundreds or thousands of miles away now work together to help people buy homes they can afford - or to help homeowners in trouble.

For example, more lenders can steer struggling homeowners toward trusted emergency loan funds available through special local programs.

And community housing experts are more creative. They're partnering to combine their dollars and know-how to further the American Dream of homeownership - such as providing very low-cost loans to cover entire down payments.

These kinds safeguards are good not only for first-time buyers and people already fortunate enough to own their homes, but also for their neighbors, their communities - for all of us.

Homeowners typically enjoy stronger family and neighborhood stability. Their children perform better in school, and they are more likely to participate in civic activities, according to the Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University.

June is national homeownership month. It's a good time to keep in mind that there is sound reason to lending a helping hand to homebuyers - and to keeping current owners from losing their homes.

For the majority of Coloradoans, owning a home is the biggest investment of their lifetime, and the rewards of this investment are plentiful. Home equity can help fund children's college tuitions, increase business opportunities and build nest eggs for retirement.

Homeownership is the most powerful driver of wealth for most people. A low-income homeowner will typically have a net worth 12 times that of a renter who earns the same amount of money.

To tap the advantages of homeownership, consumers need to develop razor-sharp decision-making skills.

For example, statistics show that participating in a homeownership education and counseling course can improve credit scores by an average of 60 points, potentially saving hundreds of thousands of dollars in interest fees over the course of a 30-year mortgage.

However, many of us may miss opportunities to get the most of what is likely to be the biggest investment of our lives or worse, fall into mortgage traps that lead to foreclosure and financial ruin.

That's in part why the Colorado Rural Housing Development Corporation, a member of the NeighborWorks network that provides the nation's largest cadre of certified homeownership counselors, is seizing national homeownership month as an opportunity to encourage Coloradoans to take on homeownership if they can.

We don't insist that homeownership is right for everyone, all the time. If the local economy (or your personal economy) is particularly shaky, riding out the turbulence as a renter may well make sense. That's why we support quality, affordable rental housing, too.

The trouble is, too many Americans lack the knowledge to make that call wisely. That's why becoming a savvier consumer about navigating the challenges of purchasing and maintaining a home can help achieve the dream of homeownership.

Get savvy. Now is the time to preserve the American Dream of homeownership.

--Al Gold is the executive director of Colorado Rural Housing Development Corporation, a member of the national NeighborWorks network and one of only 101 NeighborWorks homeownership centers in the nation. Visit www.crhdc.org.

[Report this as objectionable content.]

SUBMIT COMMENT

Rate the above story

Talk Back : submit comments to the story

*Note: you need to log-in to add a comment or rating.

Thank you! Your comment has been updated.

CONTRIBUTOR INFORMATION

Tanya Caughey

Centennial , CO

Tanya Caughey has posted 71 stories and 0 comments since joining on 7/5/2006. Tanya Caughey 's average story rating is 5.

view profile » view other postings from Tanya Caughey »

SAVE AND SHARE THIS STORY

digg	Google
del.icio.us	Yahoo!
reddit	newsvine

What is this?

STORY RSS FEEDS

All stories

All stories in Westminster

All stories by Tanya Caughey

WANT TO WRITE FOR YOURHUB.COM?

Want to see the stories you write and the photos you shoot featured in the YourHub.com Thursday print section available all over the Front Range and with home subscriptions of the Rocky Mountain News and The Denver Post? All you have to do is register, then post a story or column, start a blog or tell everyone what events are happening in town. We will print the best stories, columns, event listings, photos and blog entries in our print sections.

Loading Ad