State Agency Will Lend to 1st-Time Home Buyers

San Francisco Chronicle (07/22/08); Said, Carolyn
Wells Fargo, HomeEq, CitiMortgage and Fannie Mae will price their foreclosed properties in California at 12 percent below market value as part of a state initiative that targets prospective homeowners with modest means. The California Housing Finance Agency (CalHFA) will offer 30-year loans at a fixed interest rate of 5.5 percent to first-time home buyers who purchase the foreclosed properties through the Community Stabilization Home Loan Program. "This is a starting point to try to get some of these foreclosures off the market in some of the hardest-hit communities in the state," says CalHFA marketing director Ken Giebel. CalHFA expects more lenders to join the program.