A Message from AHFA About COVID-19
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AHFA is closely monitoring the COVID-19 pandemic
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In light of the rapidly evolving situation, AHFA has adopted the best practices put forth by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) along with other health agencies, and is closely following state and national developments. We encourage employees regularly to practice proactive preventative measures such as hand washing and social distancing to the fullest extent possible. We have also advised employees to stay home if they are exhibiting symptoms of a cold or flu, and to avoid contact with individuals who exhibit symptoms.
While we continue to do business, we have temporarily halted all employee business travel and closed the AHFA offices to visitors.
Industry-wide, everyone is working hard to develop solutions in our fast-changing environment. We will continue to monitor this situation closely and keep our audiences abreast of any updates.
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Single-Family Division Weathers Market Instability
Due to the volatility in the mortgage secondary market, AHFA temporarily suspended reservations of new loans. The rapid increase in rate and the negative impact it may have on borrowers was the primary reason for this decision.
Our secondary market department wanted to allow for the market to stabilize.
The suspension of new loan reservations was lifted on March 23. Current rates are 4.00% for FHA loans and 4.25% for conventional loans.
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Forbearance Options Available for Servicing Customers
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ServiSolutions customers experiencing a temporary loss of wages due to the COVID-19 pandemic are eligible for a forbearance plan. A forbearance plan temporarily suspends or reduces the amount of the regular monthly mortgage payment.
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Servicing Customers Encouraged to Use Self-Service Tools
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We know access to their mortgage accounts is a top priority to our ServiSolutions customers. We offer many options to help customers make their payments and access their accounts without a customer service representative.
Customers can manage their accounts online via the Customer CareNet (CCN) service available at
http://www.ServSol.com/
. CCN allows customers to make payments, review statements, view basic loan balances, get account notifications, and much more.
Customers are also encouraged to utilize our automated payment drafting and automated phone pay options.
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Lender Spotlight: Kendrick Speight, BancorpSouth Mortgage, Tuscaloosa
The recipient of BancorpSouth Mortgage’s Rising Star Award and Top Community Development Lender Award,
Kendrick Speight has made a name for himself at the company he has been with for three years. Speight has more than 15 years of experience in the mortgage business, and he’s been working with AHFA programs since 2009 when he found out about them from a co-worker who used them regularly.
Q: What do you think is the greatest benefit of AHFA programs for customers?
A: The greatest benefit of AHFA is the opportunity for homebuyers to purchase their dream home without the worry of a heavy down payment.
Q: What do you like most about AHFA’s programs?
A: The process is quite easy. It has been simplified over the years, and now it's outstanding how easy it is to complete the process to use AHFA programs.
Q: What do you find most rewarding about your job?
A: I find it most rewarding helping my community, family, friends and anyone make, what to some will be, the biggest investment in their lifetime. Homeownership can be a generational game changer for many. Educating, coaching, and being there every step of the way in the mortgage and homebuying process is really rewarding and special to me. I feel like everyone is created to do something special and unique in their life to help people and make things better than how you found it, and I believe this is my calling to do! AHFA is a great resource to help me do what I love, which is strengthening communities through homeownership.
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Grand Opening Held for Abbington Summit Pointe
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A grand opening and ribbon cutting ceremony was held Monday, March 9 for Abbington Summit Pointe in Irondale. The newly constructed 52-unit affordable housing development, targeted for the elderly, was financed in part by more than $700,000 in Housing Credits administered by AHFA.
AHFA administers multifamily programs to create affordable rental housing by providing funding and tax incentives that help developers build or rehabilitate properties for Alabama’s low-income families.
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ACRE Podcast Features an Update from AHFA
Business Development Manager Cathy James and Business Development Specialist Tony Lee were recently guests on the Alabama Center for Real Estate's Real Estate Matters podcast. They provided an update on AHFA's programs and educational opportunities.
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New Resource: Myths About Affordable Housing
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As we all know, there are many myths surrounding affordable housing. To help counter four of the most prevailing myths, we created an infographic that we have placed on the
Data & Statistics
page in the Multifamily section of our
www.ahfa.com
website. We have also been correcting these myths through our social media channels over the past month and will continue to share them on a regular basis.
We wanted to share this resource in the event it can be of use in your public education efforts surrounding affordable housing.
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Lenders & Realtors: We Have Updated Partner Flyers
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We recently redesigned our homeownership product information including rack cards, presentations, and exhibit materials. We have also updated our Partner Flyers to reflect this new design.
These customizable flyers inform Alabama homebuyers about each program, feature similar branding elements, and can serve as companion pieces to rack cards which are also available to you upon request.
The flyers also allow our partners to input their contact information prior to printing.
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Applications Accepted for 2020 Manager of the Year
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Give your top managers the recognition they deserve by nominating them for AHFA's annual Manager of the Year award. Site and property managers for any development financed with AHFA-administered HOME funds or Housing Credits are eligible.
Nominations are due April 24.
The 2020 winner will be announced at the Alabama Affordable Housing Association's
annual conference
May 19-22.
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FHLBank Atlanta Opens 2020 AHP Competitive Round February 6
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Applications for FHLBank Atlanta's 2020 Affordable Housing Program (AHP) Competitive round opened February 6. Through a competitive application process, FHLBank Atlanta member financial institutions and their community housing partners will be awarded up to $500,000 for individual AHP developments.
AHP Competitive is one of the largest sources of private funding available for affordable housing, and funding can be used to help finance the acquisition, construction, and rehabilitation of either affordable rental housing or affordable homeownership units.
FHLBank Atlanta member financial institutions use AHP Competitive grants to expand their customer base, achieve business development and community lending goals, and facilitate economic development in the communities they serve every day.
Since 1990 FHLBank Atlanta has awarded more than $790 million in AHP Competitive grants. This funding has provided more than 125,000 housing opportunities for moderate, low-, and very low-income households.
The deadline for submitting applications for 2020 AHP Competitive funding is April 2.
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Alabama Housing Finance Authority | Montgomery, Alabama | 334.244.9200 |
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Website
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