MANCHESTER, N.H. – St. Mary’s Bank has pledged to make $2.5 million in new funds available for low-income Home Loan Payment Relief, or HLPR mortgages, a subprime mortgage program developed by CUNA.
The HLPR program features a choice of adjustable rate mortgages with below-market interest rates, including a 3/1 ARM priced at 1% below the national average rate for the initial period, and 5/1 and 7/1 ARMs priced one half of 1% below St. Mary’s Bank’s published standard rates for the initial term. Rate caps of 1% per year and 5% for the life of loan help keep the monthly mortgage payments low.
Borrowers making 100% or less of the area’s median income may be eligible for the HLPR program. Qualified properties include single family, owner occupied residential homes. There is a home buyer education requirement.
The below-market loans, pronounced Helper, were developed by CUNA and were popularized in 2008, but many credit unions have stopped making them since then.
For a limited time, qualified members of America’s oldest credit union may also be eligible for a grant of up to $10,000 through the Federal Home Loan Bank’s Equity Builder program. The grants may be used for down payment assistance, customary closing costs and eligible prepaid items, and home buyer counseling costs not covered by another funding source.