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AMERICAN DREAM DOWNPAYMENT ACT PASSES HOUSE
| The U.S. House of Representatives last week passed legislation that would provide $400 million in grants over the next two years to help 80,000 low-income families pay downpayment and closing costs on their first homes. The American Dream Downpayment Act, H.R. 1276, was introduced earlier this year by U.S. Rep. Katherine Harris (R-Fla.). U.S. Sen. Wayne Allard (R-Colo.) has introduced companion legislation, S. 811, in the Senate. NAR commended President George W. Bush and U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Mel Martinez for first proposing the idea for the legislation as part of the administration's commitment to help low-income and minority families achieve the American dream of the homeownership. The bill would provide an average of $5,000 in downpayment and closing cost assistance to help first-time homebuyers with annual incomes that do not exceed 80 percent of the area median income. Grants would be made to state and local governments through HUD's HOME Investment Partnership program. |