Free Decatur event helps residents become homeowners with no down payment
A free event in Decatur is helping people learn how they could become homeowners.
The Neighborhood Assistance Corporation of America (NACA) hosted the homebuyer event at The Gallery at South DeKalb (formerly JC Penney's). It's located at 2845 Candler Rd, Suite A1, Decatur, GA 30034.
The event connects people who want to become homeowners with counselors. Those counselors explain how the mortgage program works and even issue pre-approvals the same day.
The program offers mortgages with no down payment, no closing costs, no fees, and a fixed interest rate. Eligibility is not based on a person's credit score.
Founder and CEO Bruce Marks said the goal is to make homeownership more accessible at a time when many families are struggling with high housing costs.
"Everybody's talking about the lack of affordable home ownership, everybody, or, you know, the rents are too expensive," he said.
People attending the event go through several steps designed to prepare them to buy a home. The process begins with a homebuyer workshop. Attendees learn about budgeting, the housing market and how the NACA mortgage program works. Next, they meet one-on-one with a NACA housing counselor to review their financial situation and determine what steps they need to take to qualify.
After that, their information goes through underwriting. NACA reviews expenses and determines how much home a buyer may be able to afford. If approved, buyers can begin searching for a home using the NACA mortgage.
Charlette Mobley attended with her daughter who encouraged her to come to event. She said never pursued homeownership because others convinced her not to because of her age.
"I am 54 and someone said oh you don't want to do that. You will have 30-year mortgage, so I just sat back and did not do it plus I traveled a lot," she explained.
She said she's excited that the process could lead to her becoming a homeowner for the first time especially after paying more than $2,000 a month to rent a three- bedroom apartment.
"If I can pay that rent, I can pay a mortgage," she said.
