Arizona is receiving $66 million from the federal stimulus package to revive more than 30 stalled affordable-housing projects for families, seniors and the disabled.

The developments are expected to create at least a thousand homes for residents who cannot find housing they can afford, as well as at [...]]]> Arizona puts feds’ money to work building affordable homes

Arizona is receiving $66 million from the federal stimulus package to revive more than 30 stalled affordable-housing projects for families, seniors and the disabled.

The developments are expected to create at least a thousand homes for residents who cannot find housing they can afford, as well as at least 2,000 construction, government and service jobs.

The low-income residential projects range from the Catherine Arms apartments for Native Americans in downtown Phoenix to the Santa Fe Springs subdivision for families in Sierra Vista.

The Arizona Housing Department applied for the funds shortly after the $787 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act was approved by Congress in February and is now beginning to receive the money, which must be spent by early 2012.

“We have never needed more affordable housing than now,” said Michael Trailor, the department’s director. “So many Arizonans are struggling to provide a decent home for their families, and they have too few options.”

With the state in a foreclosure crisis and unemployment soaring, Arizona’s homeless population is at a record high.

About $32 million of Arizona’s stimulus funds for housing will be spent to restart at least 20 projects.

The housing projects began under a tax-credit program also funded by the federal government. Since the late 1980s, the government has offered tax credits for building low-income housing. In return, project backers have to keep rents below market rates for at least 15 years.

Many investors put money into the projects to take advantage of the tax break. Fannie Mae was one of the nation’s biggest tax-credit investors before last year.

When financial markets collapsed last fall, many of those investors ran out of money or backed out of deals.

The new stimulus money, called the Tax Credit Assistance Program or TCAP, is a short-term fix to fill in financing gaps in these tax-credit projects. The Housing Department distributes the money to help complete projects closest to being ready.

“Without TCAP, we don’t know when we could finish Catherine Arms, and we knew the need for it was growing,” said Diana Yazzie Divine of Native American Connections. “Now, we plan to open by December.”

Construction stopped last fall on Catherine Arms but restarted recently. Rents at the redevelopment project for Native Americans will start below $500 a month.

The project is receiving almost $528,000 from Arizona’s TCAP funding to fill the gap in its tax credit financing left by investors who backed out of deals.

So far, 11 Arizona projects have received approval for TCAP funding. The Housing Department is working on contracts to give at least another 10 affordable housing developments TCAP funding.

In normal economic times, developers obtained the tax credits, then gave them to investors in exchange for cash to fund construction. But now developers, who have projects ready to build, cannot find investors interested in the tax credits.

The Housing Department will put its other $34 million in stimulus money toward a program that essentially buys back these tax credits. The developer hands over the credit, and the state provides stimulus money to fund the pending construction. The state hopes to fund at least 10 projects; contracts for five are now under review.

This tax-credit exchange program is more difficult because it puts the Housing Department in the position of running or directly investing in developments, something it does not normally do.

But the stimulus money must be spent quickly. And unlike stimulus funds for transportation or education, the money to help these housing projects has been spent slowly because these programs had to be created from scratch.

The exact number of jobs created and people helped must be tracked for each of Arizona’s housing stimulus programs and reported to the federal government.

“Arizona is ahead of most states in its use of the TCAP funding,” said Ron Sims, an assistant director of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which is administering the federal stimulus programs. “The money is meant to be spent fast to help as many people as possible.”

Stimulus dollars at work

The first round of Arizona projects to receive a share of the state’s $66 million in stimulus funding for housing:

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by Catherine Reagor – Sept. 21, 2009 12:00 AM The Arizona Republic

The Phoenix area may be in the Southwest, but it offers a lot more than Southwest-flavored houses and neighborhoods.

While there are many neighborhoods featuring stucco homes with tile roofs, there are also historical houses with mature trees, homes from the post-World War II boom years, homes in desert areas and luxurious mansions.

One [...]]]> Phoenix AZ Housing Options

The Phoenix area may be in the Southwest, but it offers a lot more than Southwest-flavored houses and neighborhoods.

While there are many neighborhoods featuring stucco homes with tile roofs, there are also historical houses with mature trees, homes from the post-World War II boom years, homes in desert areas and luxurious mansions.

One of the most exciting developments is the rise of hundreds of new condos in urban settings, particularly in downtown Phoenix, Scottsdale and near a man-made lake in downtown Tempe, home of Arizona State University. The downtown Phoenix and Tempe areas are linked by a light-rail line.

Backyard swimming pools are popular because of the 110-plus-degree summers.

A boom in freeway construction over the past decade has opened up numerous areas for living, especially on the edges of the Phoenix area. Some of these areas are so near the desert you can hear coyotes howling at night.

So choose your lifestyle, your swimming pool and your own oasis, whether that’s life in a high-rise condo within walking distance of sporting facilities, restaurants and art museums, mowing a grass lawn or tending to a low-maintenance desert-landscaped home.

Resale homes

Like everywhere else in the country, sales of existing homes have slowed, creating a large selection of about 53,500 homes from which to choose. Prices have been dropping.

Resale residences include homes on the edges of the Phoenix area that may be only a few years old, especially in Surprise, Maricopa and Queen Creek. While the commutes may be longer and the lots smaller, the prices are lower than in more central areas.

Homeowners associations are more commonly associated with newer homes.

Advantages to buying older homes include shorter commutes, larger lots and established neighborhoods. And some areas can make you feel like you’re back in the Midwest, California or wherever you are moving from.

Master-planned and gated communities

People like these communities because of the security and because the homeowners associations generally help the homes hold their values. Many are built around golf courses.

Typically, these communities feature several builders, common swimming pools and lush but low-water landscaping and recreation facilities.

Active-adult communities

Retirement communities have been part of Phoenix-area history for almost 50 years. The first retirement community in the country, Sun City, opened in 1960 in the northwest Valley. Now there is a Sun City West near the original Sun City, and far across the eastern side of the Valley, Sun City Anthem in the historic town of Florence.

There is also Sun Lakes, near Chandler, and hundreds of age-restricted communities featuring manufactured and site-built houses around swimming pools, recreation and fitness centers and sometimes golf courses. Mesa is known for dozens of manufactured-home communities that cater to retired visitors.

Custom homes

Luxurious homes are still located mostly in the Scottsdale, Paradise Valley and Carefree areas. But there are now also pockets of mansions in east Mesa; the Ocotillo area of south Chandler; Tempe; north Phoenix; and the Ahwatukee Foothills area of Phoenix.

The mansions usually sit on at least three-quarters of an acre and have a swimming pool. They often also offer the refreshing sounds of trickling water.

Condominiums

There has been a boom in condo construction in recent years as more homeowners choose shorter commutes, more culture-oriented lifestyles or nighttime views of thousands of twinkling lights from high-rise windows.

Just about every downtown has condos from which to choose.

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Features Full  and FREE access to ALL Phoenix  MLS Metro Area Listings of all homes available in: Phoenix, Scottsdale, Paradise Valley, Cave Creek, Carefree, Sun City, Peoria, Glendale, Surprise, Buckeye, Avondale, Tempe, Chandler, and Mesa, Arizona. Find REO’s, Short Sales,Bank Owned, Foreclosures! The Cutty Group!