Funding allocated for affordable housing

On Thursday, June 14, $230.4 million was approved for affordable housing in New York City, over $10 million of which will be used to build 145 housing units in Queens.
The New York State Housing Finance Agency (HFA), New York State Affordable Housing Corporation (AHC), and the State of New York Mortgage Agency (SONYMA) approved the amount, which will go toward affordable housing, grants and mortgage insurance commitments to encourage homeownership for low- to moderate-income households.
Construction on the 145 units of available housing in Jamaica and Far Rockaway is expected to begin this summer, according to SONYMA spokesperson Tiffany Berns.
Housing that will be built on the site of the former Queens Family Courthouse at the intersection of Parsons Boulevard and 89th Avenue in Jamaica will include 69 cooperative apartments with 25 studio apartments, 30 one-bedroom apartments, and 14 two-bedroom apartments within a 12-story, mixed-use building that will also contain 277 rental apartments said Berns.
The co-op units are expected to be priced at $189,040 for a studio, $216,000 for a one-bedroom, and $225,000 for a two-bedroom, Berns said. Eligible buyers are expected to make down payments of 10 percent of the purchase price.
Homeowners will be able to finance the remaining 90 percent of the subsidized sales price with a conventional mortgage or with a special low interest rate mortgage from SONYMA’s single-family loan division.
Eligible buyers for these homes, said Berns, are those who have annual incomes that do not exceed limits adjusted for family size. These limits range from $86,800 per year for a one-person household to $124,075 per year for a four-person household.
Additional housing will also be built on city-owned land around the south Jamaica area that has been unused for years, said Berns.
The plan is to build 15 two-family and five three-family homes and repairing one two-family home for a total of 47 housing units with the help of the Sutphin Boulevard/South Road Partnership Homes, Queens Borough President's Office and the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development. Each unit will be equipped with energy efficient appliances and will have a separate energy efficient gas boiler and hot water heater in the basement.
The subsidized sales prices for the 16 two-family homes are anticipated to be $348,858. The homeowners will be expected to provide five percent of the subsidized sales price as a down payment, or approximately $17,443.
For the five three-family homes, the subsidized sales prices will most likely be $523,287-also with a down payment of 5 percent, said Berns.
In Far Rockaway, a total of 29 housing units will be built in partnership with Ocean View Villas II/Edgemere II Phase B on vacant city land between Beach 37th and Beach 40th Streets, and between Rockaway Beach Boulevard and Norton Avenue in Arverne.
The 17 one-family and six two-family homes are expected to be built, Berns explained. The two-story single-family homes will include a living room, dining area, kitchen and bathroom on the first floor and three bedrooms and a bathroom on the second floor, while the three-story two-family homes will have a two bedroom tenant's apartment which will include a living room, dining room, kitchen and bathroom on the first floor.
The subsidized sales prices for the 17 one-family homes are projected to be around $291,620. Homebuyers will be expected to make a down payment of 5 percent. The subsidized sales prices for the six two-family homes are anticipated to be $387,683 – also with a 5 percent down payment.
For the South Jamaica and Far Rockaway homes, homeowners can finance the remaining 95% of the subsidized sales price with a conventional mortgage or with a special low interest rate mortgage from SONYMA.
Homes subsidized with these AHC grants will be limited to households earning no more than income limits adjusted for family size that range from $54,389 per year for a one-person household to $90,078 per year for a six-person household.
For more information about SONYMA's programs in both English and Spanish, call 1-800-382-HOME (4663) or visit the Agency's website at www.nyhomes.org.