RESOLUTION NO.
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL APPROVING PROPOSED MODIFICATIONS TO THE CITY’S FIRST-TIME HOMEBUYER 2.0 PROGRAM GUIDELINES WHEREAS, on December 7, 2021, the City Council approved the implementation of the City’s First Time Homebuyer 2.0 (“FTHB”) Program to provide income-qualified Commerce residents secondary financing of up to $150,000 to assist with down payment and closing costs related to the purchase of a new home within the “Rosewood Village” housing development located in the City of Commerce, adjacent to City Hall; and WHEREAS, the FTHB 2.0 Program was designed solely for the purchase of an eligible property located within the Rosewood Village development, in conjunction with the City Ventures project. As part of that project the developer agreed to reserve three (3) housing units per phase of the three-phase development, for a total of nine (9) housing units. Consistent with the number of units reserved, the City secured up to $150,000 for up to nine (9) qualified participants who completed the Program application and deemed eligible to move forward in the lottery process; and WHEREAS, fourteen (14) applicants successfully completed and met the Program eligibility requirements, allowing them to participate in the FTHB 2.0 Program lottery on June 21, 2022. The first three names drawn were issued an award letter allowing them to select an available unit in Phase I of the Rosewood Village housing development while lottery winners 4 through 14 were placed on a waitlist in the order they were drawn; and WHEREAS, during the mortgage loan approval process, staff was notified that at least one participant did not qualify for a home loan, some participants were non responsive, while others backed out because they were not financially ready to purchase a home within the price range of Rosewood Village, which ranged from $624,990 to $664,990 in Phase One of the development; and WHEREAS, as participants failed to move forward in the process, staff continued to go down the waitlist until we reached three households who successfully completed the loan approval process and are now proud homeowners in Phase I of the Rosewood Village; and WHEREAS, staff has analyzed the FTHB 2.0 Program and found that the last couple of years have presented some unforeseen challenges that were brought on by the 2020 Pandemic. Most notably, the rising cost of building materials that has led to the increase of home prices which was not initially contemplated when staff obtained direction to build the FTHB 2.0 guidelines. Additionally, there has been a delay in the development of Phase II of the Rosewood Village due to unforeseen environmental regulations that have evolved since the project was approved. This may add years to the completion of the Phase II development; and WHEREAS, staff recommends that the Program Guidelines be expanded to allow 3 of the remaining 11 qualified FTHB 2.0 participants the opportunity to purchase a home located within the City of Commerce boundaries, rather than limiting them to only units in the Rosewood Village development. Once Phase II of the Rosewood Village development is completed, the next 3 qualified participants may select from one of the designated housing units within that phase.
NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF COMMERCE DOES HEREBY RESOLVE, DECLARE, DETERMINE AND ORDER AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. All of the recitals above are true and correct and are incorporated herein as if set forth in full.
Section 2. Approve and adopt this resolution approving the proposed modifications to the existing First-Time Homebuyer (“FTHB”) 2.0 Program Guidelines to add expanded language to permit qualified participants the opportunity to purchase their first home within the City of Commerce boundaries, rather than only in the new Rosewood Village housing development.
Section 3. The revised Program guidelines are provided in conjunction with this Resolution.
Section 4. Authorize the Mayor to execute the Resolution for and on behalf of the City of Commerce.
Section 5. This Resolution shall take full force and effect immediately upon adoption by the City Council.
PASSED, APPROVED and ADOPTED this 25th day of April, 2023. ________________________
Hugo A. Argumedo
Mayor
ATTEST:
______________________________
Lena Shumway
City Clerk
CC Mtg: 04/25/2023
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