The Lake Orion area is not immune to the national home foreclosure crisis.
There are about 70 homes sitting vacant in the township and village combined due to the problem, estimates Penny Shults, who worked at the Orion Township assessor’s office for 20 years before taking over as township clerk in January.
‘I know we have a lot of these homes in our community,? Shults said. ‘The assessor’s department finds more every day. The hardest part is seeing these homes that were once occupied sit vacant.?
These vacant properties are not only a burden on Orion’s economy and property values, but are also public safety issues.
Now, thanks to an Oakland County program, foreclosed homes in both the township and village will be easier for buyers to acquire.
Funding for the Oakland County Home Buyer Program comes from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Neighborhood Stabilization Program, which also helps communities clean-up or knock down blighted buildings.
The village received $420,000 for this purpose last year.
The county has $17.4 million in emergency funds for the programs.
Oakland County Commissioner Mike Gingell said this funding will help the local economy.
‘One of the ways to solve the problem is to get people into these homes,? he said. ‘It will help build stability in Orion’s housing market.?
The program offers no-interest loans for down payment assistance, closing costs, home improvements or other financing.
The homebuyer must qualify for a mortgage loan from a lending institution, which will represent 51 percent of the price.
The county’s loan would make up for the remaining 49 percent.
A family of four earning up to $83,900 a year would be eligible.
It would have to be the homebuyer’s primary residence.
There will be an informational workshop for prospective homebuyers on Saturday, Feb. 28 from 9 a.m. to noon at the Oakland County Executive Office Building Conference Center located at 2100 Pontiac Lake Road, in Waterford.
For more information on the program’s requirements, visit www.oakgov.com/chi or call 248-858-1529.