Mortgage Funds Available to Rebuild Tornado-damaged N.D. Homes

State money normally reserved for first-time North Dakota home buyers will be available to Northwood residents who want to replace their tornado-damaged homes, a housing official says.

Michael Anderson, director of the North Dakota Housing Finance Agency, said he already has received a few inquiries about getting low-interest mortgage money from the program, including one request for a $55,000 loan.

The money could help fill in gaps not covered by insurance or federal aid for homeowners seeking to rebuild, Anderson said. The state Industrial Commission, which oversees the Housing Finance Agency, approved the initiative Wednesday, Oct. 17.

The agency’s HomeAccess program gives elderly, disabled, veteran and single-parent households access to a separate program to aid first-time home buyers, even if they have owned a home within the past three years.

It now has $3.2 million available for loans, Anderson said. The Northwood initiative will make half that amount, or $1.6 million, available for residents who want to buy or build homes in the Grand Forks County community.

Applicants must meet income guidelines, but they will not have to be first-time home buyers, Anderson said. The application deadline is Dec. 31, 2008.

The program has a $237,000 loan limit. Its rate on a 30-year mortgage is now about 5.6 percent. Anderson said another $2 million should be available for the Northwood mortgage initiative early next year.

Gov. John Hoeven, Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem and Agriculture Commissioner Roger Johnson make up the Industrial Commission, which also oversees oil and gas regulation and North Dakota’s state-owned bank and flour mill.