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CR 95-098 Application For The MHFA Minnesota City Participation Program 1; Y \ 0 (, '" ~ 1- '" . May 31,1995 o P K \ ~ Council Report 95-98 APPLICATION FOR THE MHFA MINNESOTA CITY PARTICIPATION PROGRAM ProDosed Action Staff recommends approval of the following motion: Approve submission of an application for the Minnesota City Participation Program (MCPP). With approval of this action the application will be submitted to the Minnesota Housing Finance Agency for their review and approval. Overview The Minnesota Housing Finance Agency (MHF A) is soliciting applications for participation in the Minnesota City Participation Program, a mortgage program for first time home buyers. This program allows the MHF A to sell mortgage revenue bonds on behalf of participating cities. The proceeds of these bonds are used to provide below market interest rate home mortgage loans to low and moderate income first time homebuyers. The City is required to pay a nonrefundable processing fee of$20 for each $100,000 in allotment provided. Based on an allocation of$I,500,000, the fee would be $300. The City must also . submit a 1 % refundable deposit when the contact is executed. The deposit is returned to the City following the sale of the mortgage revenue bonds, estimated to occur in early July. The City has participated in this program since] 992. A total of$I,397,640 has been expended through this program over the past three years. Staff is recommending that the City apply for $1,500,000 in 1994 MCPP funds with the likelihood that the final allocation will be less that this amount due to demand on the funds. Primary Issues to Consider: o What is the purpose of the program? o What services will be performed on behalf of the City? o What is the cost to the City for participating in program? o What are the requirements of the program? o What is the basis for the amount of the City's request? o Who will serve as the City's lenders? SUDDortin!! Information: r e Minnesota City Participation Program e . MCPP Application Rpt. 95-98 page 2 Primary Issues to Consider o What is the purpose of the program? The primary objective of the MCPP is to provide affordable mortgage financing for low and moderate income homebuyers through the issuance of mortgage revenue bonds. Through the MCPP, the City receives a "set-aside" of funds to be used to make loans in Hopkins. The lower interest rate of these funds attracts home buyers to Hopkins and makes their housing more affordable. o What services will be performed on behalf of the City? The following are the benefits of participating in the Minnesota City Participation Program: o MHFA will incur the expenses associated with the issuance of the bond o MHF A will provide administrative support for both the bond sale and the operation of the program o MHF A will assist in marketing each City's program . o Locallender(s) take the applications for the originate the mortgage loans o Mortgage loan funds are available to eligible homebuyers at an interest rate approximately I % below market mortgage interest rates o Only participating cities will have access to Homeownership Assistance Fund which provides downpayment or monthly payment assistance to lower income applicants. o What is the cost to the City for participating in the program? To apply for the funds, a refundable deposit equal to 1% of its requested allocation must be submitted along with the application. Based on a requested amount of $1 million, the required deposit would be $10,000. The deposit must accompany the application but will be refunded upon the sale of the mortgage revenue bonds. Additionally, a processing fee must be paid prior to the bonds being sold. The fee is based on the final allocation and is anticipated to be $200. The 1 % deposit and processing fee would be taken from the Economic Development Fund. o What are the requirements of the program? Borrower Eligibility: e o Must be a first time home buyer defined as not having had an ownership interest in a principal residence for the past 3 years . MCPP Application Rpt. 95-98 Page 3 o Must occupy home within 60 days o"Adjusted" gross income must not exceed $40,800 per year. The most common adjustment for income would be $1000 per family member so that a family offour could actually gross $44,800 and sti\1 qualify for the loan funds. Property Requirements: o Properties must be existing one family homes, townhomes or condominiums (some duplexes may also be eligible) o Residence must be in good repair and meet usual mortgage underwriting requirements o Property must not exceed the MHFA Acquisition Cost Limits of$95,000 for a single family home These are the minimum requirements for eligible properties. The City has the ability to further "target" properties or eligible participants by incorporating additional restrictions such as targeted population groups (i.e. minorities, handicapped, elderly), specific program boundaries, etc... Staff recommends that the City propose to use the minimum requirements (and the maximum income limits) allowed by MHFA to make the funds available to as many individuals or families as e possible. oWhat is the basis for the amount of the City's request? Staff is recommending that the City apply for 1.5 million in mortgage funds, based on past years usage of program funds and the likelihood that the actual allocation will be reduced due to limited bond funds. Under the guidelines of the program] a city must apply for at least $100,000 and not more than the maximum allowable based on available funds. The program does require each city to spend a minimum of 50 percent of their allocation within the six month program period. If this criteria is not met, the city is ineligible for participation in the program for the following two years. o Who will serve as the City's lenders? Under the guidelines of the program, cities may select one or more specific lenders to deliver their program or may specify a\1lenders within their area that are under contract with rv1HF A to provide program delivery. To date, the City has received seven requests from lenders to participate in the program. To insure maximum accessibility to the program funds, staff is e recommending that all interested lenders to allowed to participate. e MCPP Application Rpt. 95-98 Page 4 Alternatives The Council has the following alternatives regarding this issue: o Approve the application as recommended by staff o Amend the application to further "target 11 the program, to request more or less funds, or make other eligible changes to the application. o Decide that they do not wish to participate in the Minnesota City Participation Program. . e . APPLICA TION FOR FUNDING MINNESOTA HOUSING FINANCE AGENCY 1995 MINNESOTA CITY PARTICIPATION PROGRAM (MCPP) I. ELIGIBLE ORGANIZATION Name and address of organization: City of Hopkins 1010 First Street South Hopkins, Minnesota 55343 Name and phone number of contact person: Kersten Elverurn, Housing Coordinator #935-8474 Type of Organization: City Amount of funds req uested and estimated number of loans to be provided: 1,500,000.00; 18 loans . Balance of unused Mortgage Revenue Bond or Mortgage Credit Certificate resources still available in Hopkins (nonMHFA): None II. ORIGINATING LENDERS FBS Mortgage 7025 France Avenue South Edina, rvIN 55435 #922-2030 Norwest Mortgage, Inc. Norwest Bank Hopkins 10] 1 South First Street, Suite 102 Hopkins, rvIN 55343 #939-9066 Inland Mortgage Corporation 5100 Gamble Drive, Suite 470 St. Louis Park, MN 55416-1522 #546-1520 . Bell Mortgage Company 3601 Minnesota Drive, Suite 550 . Bloomington, MN 55345 #893-0865 TCF Mortgage Corporation 7600 France Ave S, Suite 552 Edina, MN 55435 #921-0317 Marquette Mortgage 4301 Winnetka Ave N New Hope, MN 55428-4926 #536-6262 Chemical Residential Mortgage Corp. 7900 Xerxes Ave S, Suite 170 Bloomington, MN 55431 #844-1700 III. HOUSING PLAN See Attached . IV. PROGRAM SPECIFICS How the program fits into the comprehensive housing plan: The City of Hopkins, through the MCPP will provide assistance to low to moderate income first time homebuyers to purchase a home in Hopkins. This will help meet the need for such assistance, as identified in the comprehensive housing plan. The program will also help to keep the overall housing market strong in Hopkins by linking eligible properties to interested buyers and then making the purchase of those homes possible. Borrower income limits: 80% ofHUD median family income for the Twin Cities MSA, currently at $40,800. Home purchase price limits: The home purchase price limit for the Hopkins' program may not exceed the l\1HF A price limit, currently set at 95,000. Targeting of specific population groups: . The City of Hopkins will not target any specific population group for the Minnesota City Participation funds. . Targeting of area or housing stock: The City of Hopkins will not target an area or specific housing stock for inclusion in the Minnesota City Participation Program. Optional program enhancements: None. Schedule for release of funds: Immediate. V. ECONOMIC VIABILITY Demand for the MCPP in the HODkins Housint! Market: The Minnesota City Participation Program is designed to assist low to moderate income first time homebuyers in the purchase of their first home. Hopkins is an ideal community for this type of program due to several factors. First, the single family housing stock is largely made up of "starter homes" which by value are the types of properties which qualifY for financing through this program. The City also has a significant number of condominiums and townhomes (over 15% of the housing stock). . Secondly, the City of Hopkins has a lower than average median income which indicates a greater number of residents who would qualifY for the loan program. Additionally, the City has the highest percentage of residents in the 19-29 year old age group in Hennepin County, according to the 1990 Hennepin County census. Typically, this is the age group which contains the most first time homebuyers. Real estate sales over the Dast year: In 1994, there were 65 single family homes sold in Hopkins for $95,000 or less. There were an additional 91 condominium and townhomes which sold for $95,000 or less. Combined there were a total of 156 homes sold which would potentially qualifY for the proposed program. u.S. Census Data: According to the 1990 census, the median value of single family homes in Hopkins is $86,700, slightly lower the maximum purchase price allowed under the proposed program. This data indicates that there is an ample supply of properties which would be eligible under the proposed program. . . VI. NEW CONSTRUCTION REQUIREMENTS There will be no new construction under the City of Hopkins program. VII. SIGNATURES The information herein is true and correct based on normal and prudent business inquiry. Charles D. Redepenning Phone # Mayor . .