Mississippi Mortgage Program Established to Aid Katrina Victims

Approximately 450 Mississippi families, many in the state’s six Gulf Coast counties, are eligible for special-rate mortgage loan program now available to buy a home.

According to the Jackson Clarion-Ledger, the reservation lines are open now for the $50 million in Mississippi Home Corp. bond issue funds available to qualified applicants through participating lenders.

In many counties, families of three or more with total household incomes under $56,980 are eligible for the Mississippi mortgage deal. In a few counties, the household income can be higher.

The 2007A bond issue includes a pool of funds available to families buying homes in Jackson, Harrison, Hancock, Pearl River, Stone and George counties and to home buyers directly affected by Hurricane Katrina.

The interest rate on the home loans will be 5.70 percent.

“The special mortgage rates, coupled with the program’s 3 percent cash advance, will help the Gulf Coast recovery process by significantly lowering the costs of owning a home,” Mississippi Home Corp. Executive Director Dianne Bolen said in a news release.

The remaining bonds will fund 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages at a low rate of 5.90 percent statewide. The program includes a cash advance of 3 percent of the loan amount to help home buyers make down payments and cover closing costs.

Since January 1, 2006, Mississippi Home Corp., the state’s housing finance agency, has provided funds through its Mortgage Revenue Bond Program for almost 2,700 home mortgage loans totaling $300 million.