WHEDA to Announce $662,000 Line of Credit for NHS of Richland County

WHEDA® to Announce $662,000 Line of Credit for NHS of Richland County

Credit extension to Richland County and other members of national NeighborWorks® network

Madison - The Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority (WHEDA®) will announce the extension of its line of credit program at the NHS of Richland County’s 25th Anniversary Banquet in Richland Center tonight. WHEDA Community Relations Officer David Sheperd will speak about the program that will provide a $662,000 line of credit for Neighborhood Housing Services (NHS) of Richland County in order to build, acquire, and rehabilitate area homes for low to moderate income first-time home buyers. Sheperd will speak on behalf of WHEDA Executive Director Antonio Riley.

"WHEDA looks forward to continued success with this line of credit through our partnership with NHS of Richland County," said Riley. "We’re proud to support their efforts to further boost affordable housing and homeownership in rural Wisconsin. In fact, thanks to the line of credit WHEDA provided, the three homes built by NHS of Richland County in 2007 were the only new home starts that year in the county."

The WHEDA program provides a 2-year, 2 percent interest line of credit for housing corporations like NHS of Richland County to leverage the construction or acquisition of affordable housing projects.

NHS of Richland County is one of three Wisconsin members of the national NeighborWorks® network to receive the line of credit program from WHEDA. NeighborWorks® Green Bay and Neighborhood Housing Services (NHS) of Beloit are the other two agencies involved in the credit extension. The three agencies have built, acquired, or rehabilitated a total of 22 homes with the WHEDA credit program.

NHS of Richland County first received the line of credit in 2002. To date, NHS of Richland County has built a total of 14 homes with the line of credit, 13 of which have been sold. With the extension of the WHEDA credit program for 2008-2009, NHS of Richland County plans to build six to seven new affordable homes.

"Low cost WHEDA construction financing has been critical to the successful development of over $2 million in new housing construction in and around Richland Center in the past five years," said NHS of Richland County Executive Director Terry Testolin. "Through our partnership with WHEDA, NHS of Richland County has become a regional leader in developing workforce housing."

The homes built with WHEDA credit will be Energy Star Certified, and will meet USDA thermal code guidelines. First-time home buyers intending to use a WHEDA mortgage to purchase their home must meet specific WHEDA income guidelines.

NHS of Richland County is a private, non-profit, community controlled corporation with a volunteer board and committees that serve Richland, Grant, and Vernon Counties. Primary services of the NHS of Richland County include owner-occupied rehabilitation lending, rental rehabilitation lending, and home-ownership lending. For more information on NHS of Richland County, visit the web site www.nhsrcwi.org.

WHEDA is an independent state authority that works with lenders to provide low-cost financing for housing and small business development in Wisconsin. For more information on WHEDA's housing programs, call 1-800-334-6873 or browse this web site.