Can Atlanta's Beltline Mortgage Assistance Program help residents avoid being priced out?

The city of Atlanta is launching a new homeownership assistance program for people living along the Beltline. The initiative is targeting communities in the south and west parts of Atlanta. 

The initiative is called the Beltline Mortgage Assistance Program, a program launched by Mayor Andre Dickens, Invest Atlanta and Atlanta Beltline Inc. with $1.5 million in funding, the program is giving away $20,000 to $30,000 in down payment assistance to people buying homes in the city's south and west sides. 

Mayor Dickens say the effort is meant to increase opportunities around the Beltline. 

"Progress cannot be made at the expense of people who help build and sustain these communities," Dickens said. "Or at the expense of our younger residents looking to build their lives here."

The program is targeting teachers, first responders and other public sector workers. 

"I look forward to seeing all of those incentives and things coming out in our community because we need them," Penny Clark, a lifelong Atlantan, said. 

"I think it's really big to push homeownership to at least the youth," said Zach Perdue, a Southwest Atlanta homeowner. "I think people right now have a misconception that…owning a home is a bad thing. In reality, it's a great thing because you set up your life and you set up wealth for your children and for your family."

While community members expressed support for the program, they say they want to see prospective homebuyers set up for success. 

"Do they have programs that walks you through what that looks like?" Clark asked. "How much it would cost? The process and it gives you all the things you need to know about buying a home? Because most people jump into it and don't know what could go wrong."

People also say they want to see the city continue to invest in other amenities and resources to make the area an even more viable and vibrant place to live.

"Everyone wants a grocery store," Evan Crabtree said, a homeowner in East Point. "Access to clean, good food. The west side has always been like a food desert…I think that's a big thing that needs to happen as well."

According to Invest Atlanta, the Beltline has reached 81 percent of its goal to create or preserve 5,600 affordable housing units by 2030.