City unlocks door to owning home
CALGARY SUN - FIRST POSTED: SUNDAY, MAY 15, 2011 05:43 PM MDT
Two of the first purchasers of the Attainable Home Ownership Program in Calgary were all smiles on May 5, when they received the "key" to their new home from Mayor Naheed Nenshi.
Tyler Nixon and Laura Kapteyn are exactly the kind of couple Attainable Homes Calgary is looking for to be a part of their program.
Both work at the Centre Street Church and will be married this summer, but they thought homeownership was a long way off.
"Attainable Homes is a not-for-profit organization created by the City of Calgary with a straightforward goal: Make it possible for more middle-income Calgarians to be able to purchase a home," says executive director Sharon McCormick.
"Individuals and families earning $53,000 to $80,000 per year have historically been locked out of the housing market due to the high cost of real estate and challenges of saving for a downpayment."
Nixon and Kapteyn purchased their high-quality, entry-level, two-bedroom apartment-style condo by Cidex Developments Ltd. at a price that was attainable for their household income and received a 10% down-payment towards the purchase.
Mayor Nenshi, a board member of Attainable Homes Calgary, was pleased to introduce the couple and the program.
"Calgary has been waiting for this program," he says.
"It's a stepping stone into homeownership for middle-income Calgarians and it creates a greater sense of economic and social vitality in this great city."
The program shares in the equity earned in the home, realized if and when home buyers sell their home on the open market.
That money is put back into the program for the down-payment assistance for future households, making the program self-sustainable over time.