By: Lydia Crawley
The Parsons Advocate
Representatives from HomeOwnership Center, Inc. addressed the Tucker County Commission June 11th on what services their organization offers to the residents of Tucker County. Loan Originator Chris Vance and Home Ownership Advisor Jami Carpenter spoke to the Commissioners on behalf of the organization.
Carpenter said that she provides credit counseling and budgeting services. According to Carpenter, she assists individuals in improving their credit in order to work towards their individual goals. Carpenter said that most of their clients are first time home buyers.
“It doesn’t necessarily be buying a house right now, it could be in the future,” Carpenter said. “It could be they want to buy a car and they just have to know how to get there. So I essentially give them the tips and tricks to get their credit to where it should be so we can get to their overall goal.”
Carpenter said the organization provides education such as Home Buyer Education. The course is eight hours and is good for first time home buyers, Carpenter said.
“It really takes you from start to finish of what it looks like to purchase a house, so when you get through this process you are not surprised by anything that is thrown at you,” Carpenter said.
The organization also offers Foreclosure Prevention, Carpenter said. Carpenter said she offers assistance to those who are facing foreclosure to help find options to avoid the process and adjust budgets in order to be able to afford house payments.
“I help people through the process, if they are going to face foreclosure, how do we stop that from happening or how do we adjust our budget to be able to afford our house payment,” Carpenter said.
Financial Education is also offered by the organization, Vance said. With this program, the organization goes into high schools in the area to provide financial education to the seniors. HomeOwnership was at Tucker County High School in May, Vance said, to present the program.
“We talk about Credit, moving out on your own, budgeting, buying a car, paying for school, we go over some student loan information,” Vance said. “All of the stuff to put the information in their hands to show them what they are going to be looking at when they turn 18 and they get out on their own.”
The organization also provides Affordable Lending. The organization offers USDA no down payment loans, Vance said. Part of the program is a subsidy that helps individuals pay their house payment each month, Vance said. The program also assists those on fixed income such as seniors and the disabled, Carpenter said.
“It gives them a really low house payment and helps them get started,” Vance said. “Then as they grow in their employment and their income, the subsidy goes down.”
HomeOwnership Center, Inc. is located in Elkins at 2276 Randolph Avenue next to, but not affiliated with the Housing Authority office. For more information on any of the programs the Center provides, call 304-636-9115 or email info@hocwv.org.
