Homeownership is beyond the reach of tens of millions of people throughout the country. “To invest in workforce housing is really about investing in our economic future,” commented Dr. Irvin Pedro Cohen, executive director of LISC Jacksonville.
Homeownership is beyond the reach of tens of millions of people throughout the country. And that shortfall has significant implications for the well-being of families and communities.
“To invest in workforce housing is really about investing in our economic future,” commented Dr. Irvin Pedro Cohen, executive director of LISC Jacksonville. “When we expand access to quality homes for essential workers, like teachers, nurses and transit workers, we help build equity, anchor stability, and support long-term growth.”
For example, Pedro pointed to a recent LISC loan that is fueling 17 new for-sale townhomes on the west side of Jacksonville. The project, known as Cliff Street Townhomes, is sponsored by House Hack LLC and developer Steve Mandelbaum, who works in Jacksonville neighborhoods that have seen little to non-new construction in recent decades.
The three-bedroom homes will be targeted to families earning up to 80 percent of the area median income (or nearly $60,000 for a family of four) and will be listed at $260,000—a scarce price point in a local market where median housing costs have rapidly risen. Notably, as part of the effort, Regions Bank is offering 100 percent financing to buyers, with no requirement for private mortgage insurance, which helps open homeownership up to families that might not otherwise have an opportunity to buy.
LISC’s revolving $1.5 million commitment is structured to maximize its impact. Initially, the loan will finance site acquisition, predevelopment work and construction of the first homes. Proceeds from the sale of those homes will then pay down a portion of the loan, and LISC will recycle those funds to finance the next phase of building. The total development cost is estimated at nearly $3.6 million.
“This project brings together committed local partners and innovative capital to not only help expand our stock of affordable for-sale housing but to help connect buyers to affordable financing so they can become homeowners,” said Chuck Shealy, program officer with LISC Jacksonville.
“In that way, this loan not only supports quality real estate development, but also helps fuel family wealth-building so that people who might otherwise be priced out of the market have a chance to benefit from our city’s prosperity. It is an investment in equity and opportunity.”
The homes are now under construction and are expected to be completed in 2022.