The District of Columbia Housing Finance Agency (DCHFA) in partnership with the DC Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD), will host the third annual Homeownership Fair on June 13 at Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library, with a goal to empower prospective homebuyers with tools to help them achieve their goals.
The event, hosted from 10 a.m. – 3 p.m., aims to connect residents with real estate professionals and homeownership counselors free of charge.
“Information is power, and it creates confidence in the process,” Julienne Y. Joseph, DCHFA’s senior vice president of single family programs and housing finance expert, told The Informer. “What we want to do is make sure that the people who are interested in achieving the dream of homeownership don’t have additional barriers to information.”
The majority of residents in the District rent housing rather than own, according to D.C Policy Center, a nonpartisan think tank. Rentals are estimated to make up about 68 % of housing in the District.
Last month, the DCHFA launched HomeAdvantage DC, a new financing initiative aimed at expanding homeownership opportunities through below-market mortgage rates and optional down payment assistance for eligible buyers. Those who qualify will be able to access 30-year fixed-rate mortgages and receive up to 3.5% in down payment assistance depending on the loan type.
“DCHFA’s HomeAdvantage DC program will help District residents with high housing costs and instability. One of DCHFA’s priorities is to decrease the homeownership gap,” said Christopher E. Donald, DCHFA’s executive director and CEO in a press release. “Qualified residents can have stability while living in a healthy and affordable environment.”
At the fair, residents will have the opportunity to learn more about the new financing program as well as connect with lenders and industry experts, including Joseph who will host a fireside chat. The fair will feature more than 30 exhibitors and also include information sessions.
“We are very excited to put [the fair] on for the third year,” Joseph said. “[Attendees] can expect great conversations about resources available to make homeownership more attainable.”
‘Homeownership is Still One of the Greatest Investments That Someone Can Make’
As senior vice president at DCHFA, Joseph explained the main barriers prospective District homebuyers face, including: rising housing costs, interest rates, the lack of generational wealth and credit.
Prospective buyers often enter the homeownership process with many misconceptions, which Joseph said can deter them from even attempting to start the process.
Despite the common belief that a perfect credit score is needed to purchase a home, Joseph told The Informer this isn’t necessarily true. In the District, residents need a minimum credit score of 640 to qualify for MyHomeAdvantage DC.
“There’s some unspoken housing trauma that could be there that makes it more comfortable for prospective buyers to just continue to rent. They wonder if this is a good time to buy,” she said. “Homeownership is still one of the greatest investments that someone can make, as well as creates generational wealth.”
As a former homebuyer counselor, Joseph recommends that all residents interested in purchasing a home seek homeownership counseling, which helps prospective buyers better understand and navigate the process.
The HomeAdvantage DC program requires first-time homebuyers to take a homebuyers education course, with exceptions made to those buying a home in a federally-targeted area in the District.
“If [buyers] secure homeownership or homebuyer education and counseling before entering into the process, it creates a different level of ownership in the process that makes them feel more in charge,” Joseph said.
The Homeownership Fair on June 13, Joseph said, will give D.C. residents the opportunity to learn more about how to start the process of purchasing a home in the nation’s capital.
“Our doors and our arms,” Joseph said, “are wide open for anyone who’s interested in coming.”
