Sean Murphy

The Mississippi Development Authority will begin the second round of the Small Rental Assistance Program next week with a series of workshops for property owners who are considering applying for a forgivable loan to help build or rehabilitate Coast rental properties.

The 16 workshops begin Monday in Biloxi and will continue through Oct. 30 at various locations in Biloxi, Gulfport, Gautier, Poplarville, Saucier, Long Beach, Picayune, Pascagoula and Bay St. Louis.

"We've worked to make Round 2 of the Small Rental program much simpler for applicants to understand and navigate through the application process," said Jon Mabry, Chief Operations Officer for MDA's Disaster Recovery Division. "There will be a special emphasis on prioritizing those applications that help rebuild affordable housing in neighborhoods hardest hit by Hurricane Katrina."

The Small Rental Assistance Program applies to properties in Harrison, Hancock, Jackson and Pearl River counties to provide loans of up to $40,000 per unit, provided the owner rents the property to low- and moderate-income tenants at least five years.

Applicants with properties in existing neighborhoods, or "infill," are especially encouraged to apply.

"Restoring communities and giving them the tools needed to recover and prosper is really the overriding goal of Mississippi's hurricane recovery effort," said SRAP Program Manager Nell Rogers. "We're targeting SRAP dollars toward rejuvenating existing neighborhoods and helping people stay in familiar areas and long-standing communities where they feel most at home."

Each workshop will be managed by MDA personnel who can help applicants determine if the SRAP program is right for their property.

"Even though we're targeting infill, we encourage everyone who thinks they might qualify to attend a workshop," Mabry said. "We want as many applicants as possible, and our staff will gladly explore all ways in which SRAP can be applied toward establishing more affordable rental stock along the Coast."

An SRAP guidebook is posted on MDA's Web site: www.mississippi.org, click on "disaster recovery."

An online application form will be posted on MDA's Web site October 15.

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SRAP workshops
Here is a schedule of SRAP workshops that will be held from Oct. 13 to Oct. 30 in South Mississippi:

Mon, Oct. 13, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Beau Rivage Main Theater, 875 Beach Road, Biloxi;

Tue, Oct. 14, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Mississippi Power Bldg., Hwy. 90, 30th Ave, Gulfport;

Wed, Oct. 15, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. West Harrison Community Ctr., 4670 Espy Ave. Long Beach;

Thu, Oct.16, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Donal Snyder Community Ctr., 2520 Pass Road, Biloxi;

Tue, Oct. 21, 10 a.m. to Noon, Harrison Cty. Library, 2141 Popps Ferry Road, Biloxi;

Wed, Oct. 22, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. St. Martin Community Ctr., 15008 Lemoyne Blvd., Biloxi;

Thu, Oct. 23, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. MGCCC Jeff Davis Campus, Bldg. D, 2226 Switzer Rd., Gulfport;

Fri, Oct. 24, 10 a.m. to Noon, American Legion Post 139, 703 Green Meadow Rd., Bay St.Louis;

Sat, Oct. 25, 10 a.m. to Noon, MGCCC Jackson Cty. Campus, Fine Arts Aud., 2300 Hwy. 90, Gautier;

Mon, Oct. 27, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., Pearl River CC Cafeteria, 101 Hwy. 11 N, Poplarville;

Tue, Oct. 28, 10 a.m. to Noon, Picayune City Council Chambers, 815 N Beach St., Picayune;

Tue, Oct. 28, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., Our Lady of

the Gulf Community Ctr, 228 S Beach Blvd., Bay St. Louis;

Wed, Oct. 29, 10 a.m. to Noon, Woolmarket Community Ctr., 16320 Woolmarket Rd., Biloxi;

Wed, Oct. 29, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., Saucier Community Ctr., City Hall, 24014 Church Ave., Saucier;

Thu, Oct. 30, 10 a.m. to Noon, B.E. McGinty Ctr., Jackson Co. Fairgrounds, 2902 Shortcut Rd. Pascagoula;

Thu, Oct. 30, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., VFW, Orange Grove, 15206 Dedeaux Rd., Gulfport.

Gulfport Grant Will Provide Down Payment Assistance For Home Buyers

Gulfport Launches HOMELINE Program - offering $50,000 for Down Payment Assistance

A GREAT opportunity that is limited to as many as 165 low and moderate income buyers!!

Beginning October 1st, you can pick up your HOMELINE application at Trailer E-2 near City Hall. Part of the application process will be to obtain your homeloan financing. We will be able to provide you with guidance in regards to the rules and guidelines.

Call Sunny Mortgage Group and ask for Sean Murphy today to get pre-approved. 228-861-5081.

GULFPORT, MS (WLOX) - Another incentive is about to become available to help the area's workforce become homeowners. On October 1, Gulfport will launch a program it calls Homeline.

Homeline is funded by a nine million dollar community development block grant. Here's how it works. As many as 165 low and moderate income Gulfport residents who qualify for the program will receive $50,000 in down payment assistance to buy a home.

Word of that program kept Diane Ragas quite busy. "Good afternoon. Community Development. Diane speaking. May I help you?" she said time after time as people kept calling Gulfport Community Development office for details about Homeline.

"It's thrilling," Carey Bundt said. Bundt is the community development programs director for the city. "It is thrilling that a municipality can offer this can offer this kind of dream program."

Homeline is for people who do not own a home.

"With the cost of insurance, with the cost of housing, how it's gone up, you have to have a greater down payment assistance to make that affordable," Bundt said. "When this came about with MDA, we found out about the first round, Karen (McCarty) and I decided lets go for it."

It turned out Gulfport was the only south Mississippi city to apply and receive round one of this CDBG workforce housing grant.

"Yes. Yes," Bundt said, with a big smile on her face. "I thought we'd get it."

Consequently, as many as 165 of its low and moderate income residents are about to become eligible for a $50,000 down payment assistance grant to put toward a home purchase. That's why the phone keeps ringing.

"They can hardly believe such a program exists," Bundt said.

However, it only exists if you meet the program's financial limitations. For instance, if you live alone, your total adjusted gross income must be less than $27,450. If you're part of a couple, your adjusted income must be less than $31,350. A family of four also qualifies for this down payment assistance grant if its total adjusted gross income is less than $39,200.

"This is an opportunity that may never come again," Bundt thought.

In a news release announcing the Homeline program, Mayor Brent Warr reiterated the importance of what Gulfport is about to offer its citizens.

"The CDBG funds will provide long-awaited and greatly deserved workforce housing opportunities for low and moderate income citizens," the mayor wrote. "I encourage residents to take advantage of this program and fill out an application. The process is simple, and we are here to help."

According to the guidelines, a home purchased through Gulfport's Homeline program must have been built after 1980. And it must be in good condition. The house can cost no more than $180,000.

It turns out that's nearly the average price of a south Mississippi home. The Mississippi Gulf Coast Multiple Listing Service did a statistical analysis of the realty market in Harrison, Hancock, Jackson, George and Greene Counties. When 2007 ended, the average price for a home was $166,497.

Gulfport has two years to use the nine million dollar grant.

Beginning October 1st, Homeline applications will be available for pick-up at the City of Gulfport Community Development Department, 2309 15th Street, Gulfport. For more information, call (228) 868-5736 or (228) 868-5862, or email communitydevelopment@gulfport-ms.gov.