Community Housing Innovations

Nearly $2 million available in down payment assistance from CHI

Thanks to recent awards of down payment assistance funding from New York State, Westchester and Long Island first-time homebuyers may take advantage of the best real estate market for qualified buyers in a decade. With awards of $1.2 million for Long Island and $700,000 for Westchester, the nonprofit agency is taking applications from qualified buyers ready to purchase. The grants of up to $30,000 each come with free homebuyer counseling. For information on free seminars coming up to explain the programs, click on your area of interest.

Click here for the Long Island flyer or visit our web site to register.
Click here for the Westchester flyer or visit our web site to register.
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Only four Minerva Place Condominiums left!
Super Energy-Efficient development in White Plains
to have Open House on Saturday, May 1, 2010

Robert and Elaine Balsome became the first homeowners at Minerva Place Condominium in White Plains, after closing their two-bedroom condo on April 19th. Mr. Balsome, a New York State employee, and Mrs. Balsome, retired after 30 years at the New York City Board of Education, had rented for all their lives and thought they could never afford to own. They were thrilled to purchase one of the 14 workforce condominiums, subsidized by the City of White Plains, where they have rented for decades…

CLICK HERE for more information on how you may become a homeowner for as little as $210,000 in downtown White Plains,
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The Westchester Discrimination Settlement:
The Promise of a Mixed-Income Community

Amid all of the discussion about Westchester County’s need to develop affordable housing, two questions that keep arising are where to put affordable housing and how to integrate it into the upscale areas of the county. Woodcrest Village provides an example for Westchester’s leaders, developers and citizens, illustrating the success of a mixed-income community and demonstrating the ability for affordable homes to reside right beside luxury, market-rate homes.

Woodcrest Village is a 90-unit residence (3 buildings, 4 floors each) for individuals age 55 and over. When it opened in 2005, the community quickly attracted local Mt. Kisco retirees and others from the tri-state area who wanted to downsize after their children had left home. Of the 90 units, 66 one and two-bedroom homes were sold as “affordable,” with a household income limit of no more than 80% of the Westchester Area Median Income, adjusted by family size. Base Prices were $210,900 for a two-bedroom and $170,900 for a one-bedroom. The remainder of the units had no income requirements, but were priced at below-market levels —about $275,900 for a two-bedroom, larger home.

And while some might think this would create a class disparity between those who have designated affordable units and those who do not, this is not the case at all at Woodcrest. The residents are a strong and integrated community -- meeting in the large common rooms for games of Mah Jong, charades, book clubs, movie nights and even blizzard parties, which were especially popular this snowy winter.

Woodcrest residents Lloyd and Sharon Alpert, who waited two years to get their third-floor, two-bedroom apartment after selling their home in Fresh Meadows, Queens describe a strong and friendly community. “With all of the potluck dinners, we never see the same dish twice,” they stated. “And we never coordinate in advance; it just works out that way.” When asked about the mixed income community, they recall knowing that some people have income-restricted apartments, but note, “It’s not an issue at all. People don’t look up or look down at each other. Everybody is just really friendly.”

Right next door to Woodcrest Village is a neighboring community called Glassbury Court, which features 34 market-rate homes, with a wide range of residents, including families and young professionals. These homes sold for up to $1 million. The two communities share a swimming pool and a clubhouse.

“I see mixed-income as an element of diversity which, I think, is good for the community” stated Phyllis Ruppert, President of the Board of Woodcrest Village. “It broadens perspectives and fosters understanding among people with varying backgrounds and experiences.”

Woodcrest Village shatters previously held stereotypes about affordable housing. Within Woodcrest itself, income restrictions and affordable units are not at all on the minds of the residents. Instead they focus on sharing news about grandchildren being accepted to college and wondering who will play the piano at the next community party. Second, the proximity of Woodcrest and Glassbury Court illustrates that affordable housing does not depress property values.

“As Community Housing Innovations (CHI) moves to assist Westchester County with complying with the discrimination lawsuit, the success of Woodcrest argues for mixed income, as opposed to purely affordable communities,” stated Alexander Roberts, Executive Director of Community Housing Innovations, the nonprofit sponsor of the project, which was developed by Wilder Balter Partners. “We need to integrate affordable housing throughout the county, rather than creating low-income enclaves.”

There are currently one and two-bedroom units (income-restricted and non-restricted) available for sale at Woodcrest Village. For more information, visit www.chigrants.org or call (914) 683-1010.

CHI Makes Affordable Housing More Affordable with Energy Retrofits

Community Housing Innovations is taking advantage of federal subsidies by making dozens of its homes more energy-efficient. As described in the Long Island Business News:

The organization worked with the Association of Energy Affordability to weatherize four homes with 17 tenants in Blue Point, Patchogue and Central Islip, according to a statement from the housing group. The weatherization, which includes new insulation, upgrading the boiler, sealing doors and windows, and insulating pipes, is expected to decrease utility bills for the homes by 15-20 percent. National Grid and the U.S. Department of Energy provided funds for the projects.

A home and two shelters with 69 tenants in Patchogue, Riverhead and Brentwood, are currently undergoing energy upgrades. The effort will use stimulus funds from the U.S. Department of Energy administered through the Supportive Housing Network of New York.