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Columbia Mayor Steve Benjamin fielded questions Tuesday afternoon from the media about the city’s new City Lender Uplift Program.<\/p>\n
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In the wake of the disaster at Allen Benedict Court, the city of Columbia is making it easier to become a homeowner with the City Lender Uplift Program.<\/p>\n
This loan program offers low down payments, assistance with closing costs and will even work with those that have low credit scores.<\/p>\n
Mayor Steve Benjamin made it clear that this community development initiative is separate from public housing. The goal of the program is to remove barriers of entry into home ownership for those in the local community.<\/p>\n
\u201cGive me an opportunity. If you give me an opportunity, you remove some of these false barriers of entry just to have safe, affordable housing where I can work hard, take care of my family, provide shelter and be able to keep some of my income to put food on the table and educate my family,\u201dsaid\u00a0Benjamin.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Through this program,\u00a0Benjamin hopes to \u201cattack this in a very comprehensive way.\u201d Including those in public housing, Section 8, affordable housing and all the way up through the median income, the goal is to make sure that those who work in the city can also live in the city.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re talking about people who are looking to become homeowners for the first time,\u201d said\u00a0Benjamin. \u201cThere are across this city hundreds, if not thousands of folks, who emerge from public housing and are homeowners in this city, some using some of these tools that our Community Development Department has put forward.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe don\u2019t want our clients to drain their accounts to get into home ownership. This right here makes it easier, more affordable,\u201d said Felicia Kilgore,\u00a0loan office supervisor of community development.<\/p>\n
Kilgore says that clients should take the first leap and encourages those interested to reach out.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe want to ensure that they understand what it takes, so once they get to the closing table, they\u2019re experts,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAll across America, this is a challenge that we\u2019re facing,\u201d said\u00a0Benjamin. \u201cHow do we make sure that we have more housing options for our citizens?\u201d<\/p>\n
All of this comes after the deaths of two men at Allen Benedict Court, a public housing complex off of Harden Street, after a deadly carbon monoxide leak. More than 400 residents of Allen Benedict Court were displaced.<\/p>\n
The public housing complex was closed on Jan. 18, a day after the deaths were discovered. A month later, some residents are still in temporary housing.<\/p>\n
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Gloria Saeed, director of community development, opened Tuesday’s press conference by giving a brief introduction of the initiative.<\/p>\n
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The City of Columbia’s Community Development Department displayed information about a new home ownership program, which includes low down payments, no private mortgage insurance and low interest rates.<\/p>\n
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