What is the overall view of Lease Purchases in the Market today?

I will definitely keep you all posted. I know in Georgia it seems that about 50% of all real estate for sale is a lease purchase.  Sorry about that link. It was interesting. Here is a copy of it. I am very passionate about helping buyers and desperate sellers. I think its time to fix the problem somehow and investors just taking people out of homes is not the answer.  Neither is foreclosure.

NEW LEASE PURCHASE PROGRAM MAKES $35 MILLION AVAILABLE TO PROSPECTIVE HOMEBUYERS IN TRAVIS COUNTY

Congressman Doggett Lauds Program

Travis County, TX - Congressman Lloyd Doggett (D-TX) joins with the Strategic Housing Finance Corporation (SHFC) of Travis County, a non-profit organization dedicated to helping potential homebuyers with counseling, education and down payment and closing cost assistance, to announce a new lease-to-own homeownership program offered by Freddie Mac.

The Lease Purchase Plus Program of Travis County offers cash and credit-challenged borrowers an opportunity to lease-to-own a home in Travis County through a $35 million lease purchase revenue bond program. The program provides an affordable alternative for those who are unable to purchase a home due to credit challenges or who lack cash for the down payment and closing costs.

To participate in the program, qualified residents work with the SHFC to select the home of their choice in Travis County. SHFC buys the house and leases it to the purchaser for a period of up to 39 months. The lease-purchaser is counseled by SHFC during the lease period to ensure that they are ready to assume the loan at the end of the lease period. By making timely lease payments and resolving all outstanding credit issues during the lease period, the family can exercise the purchase option and assume the mortgage from SHFC when the lease expires.

"Commendation to Freddie Mac and all of the local partners that made this possible," said Doggett. "This represents a creative public-private partnership to help working families access affordable housing."

"Lease Purchase Plus is designed to help more families overcome credit and downpayment concerns and achieve their personal dreams of homeownership," said Dave Stevens, senior vice president at Freddie Mac. "By creating new homeowners, the program will add important momentum to the rebuilding and strengthening of neighborhoods throughout Travis County."

Wiley Hopkins, executive vice president, Strategic Housing Finance Corporation of Travis County, said, "When we talk about the ladder of the ‘Continuum of Housing', the missing step has been how to serve those families and individuals seeking homeownership that have been denied. They may have the financial means to meet the mortgage payments, but do not have the cash resources to meet the requirements of closing costs and down payment. There are also those that may have credit and debt issues that have disqualified them from the typical home purchase/financing process in the past. Our Lease Purchase Plus program clearly provides the avenues to homeownership for those individuals routinely denied homeownership opportunities. The program also provides alternatives for overcoming these obstacles by repairing credit histories, reducing debt to acceptable levels and providing adequate funds for closing on their home."

Freddie Mac developed the Lease Purchase Plus product as an alternative for those who might otherwise rent indefinitely or turn to non-prime lenders for mortgage financing at higher interest rates.

The Lease Purchase Plus Program of Travis County is available for people with household incomes at or below $81,675. To qualify for the loan, the applicant must have sufficient income and be able to afford the monthly lease payment, which includes the cost of principal, interest, taxes and insurance on a mortgage loan as well as other program fees. A commitment fee (1% of the home sales price) is also required after they are approved for the program. Additionally, the borrower's monthly debts, including the lease payment, must not exceed 45 percent of their eligible income.

Qualified applicants will be referred to an approved participating lender to complete the application and determine the maximum purchase price of the home. A participating realtor will then help the applicant locate an eligible home in Travis County. All applicants will be asked to complete an approved homebuyer education course provided by the East Austin Economic Development Corporation prior to move in. After moving in, the applicant will participate in monthly credit counseling in order to qualify to assume the loan at the end of the lease period.

"Homeownership is our passion at East Austin Economic Development Corporation," said Norma Johnson, housing counselor at East Austin Economic Development Corporation. "Our homebuyer education courses show consumers how to manage and save their money with the goal of purchasing and keeping a home. The Lease Purchase Plus Program is a good opportunity for consumers who want to improve their credit while they are leasing a home."

Other organizations participating in the program are: Austin National Mortgage, CitiMortgage, Coastal Mortgage, Community Empower, CTX Mortgage, DHI Mortgage, George K. Baum & Company, Mitas, One Source Mortgage, Prime Lending and Universal American Mortgage Company.

For more information about the Lease Purchase Program of Travis County, please call Community Empower at 1-800-362-6101. The Program Overview and online application are available on the web at http://www.traviscountylease.com/.

The Strategic Housing Finance Corporation of Travis County (SHFC), a subsidiary of The Housing Authority of Travis County, was created to finance the costs of acquiring residential property in Travis County. The SHFC is the facilitator of the Lease Purchase Program, and served as issuer for the $35 million bond issue that funds the program. All homes selected by the program participants will be purchased initially by the SHFC and later assumed by the participants who have successfully met the requirements of the program.

Freddie Mac is a stockholder-owned corporation chartered by Congress in 1970 to create a continuous flow of funds to mortgage lenders. By supplying lenders with the money to make mortgages and packaging the mortgages into marketable securities, Freddie Mac sustains a stable mortgage credit system and reduces the mortgage rates paid by homebuyers. Over the years, Freddie Mac has made home possible for one in six homebuyers in America and two million renters. More information on Freddie Mac can be found on the company's website located at www.freddiemac.com.