The Colorado Housing and Finance Authority is issuing bonds again after a nine-month freeze and has started up two new home- mortgage programs.
The agency that annually issued $500 million to $700 million in debt found itself locked out of the bond markets in June because of the deepening credit crisis.
But last week, CHFA raised $90 million in an offering, one of only four state home-lending authorities able to do so this year.
“You should see more bonds coming,” said CHFA executive director Roy Alexander.
Alexander said proceeds from the offering will pay down loans the authority made and held on to while it was waiting for markets to thaw.
“We didn’t completely shut down,” he said. “We kept some activity going using our own resources.”
In addition, the lending authority has started up two mortgage programs to help low- and moderate-income borrowers.
Lenders will underwrite the mortgages, which CHFA will bundle and securitize. The U.S. Government National Mortgage Association, or Ginnie Mae, will buy them.
“Ginnie Mae in essence takes the place of the bond market as the source of the capital for these loans,” Alexander said.
The new HomeOpener program is available to households earning less than 130 percent of their area’s median income. In Denver, that is $93,300 for a family of three.
Borrowers must have a credit score of 580 or higher and take a free course on homebuying. Total debt payments, including the mortgage, can’t exceed 45 percent of the borrower’s household income.
CHFA is also offering Home Opener Plus for borrowers needing funds to cover a down payment and closing costs.
The federal government last year cracked down on seller-funded down-payment-assistance programs because they artificially inflated home prices.
The program will also provide a second mortgage for up to 3 percent of the first mortgage at a slightly higher interest rate.
On Thursday, HomeOpener loans carried a 5.38 percent interest rate, while the Plus version of the program was at 5.5 percent.
Aldo Svaldi: 303-954-1410 or asvaldi@denverpost.com
