The College Park City Council unanimously passed three resolutions that encourage homebuyers to purchase property in the city during a work session March 22.
The council approved an allotment of $3 million of federal pandemic relief funds to a neighborhood stabilization project pitched by the College Park City-University Partnership.
The project was developed with the goal of helping people such as graduate students, families, young professionals and older adults have improved access to purchasing property in College Park, council member Kate Kennedy said.
The project will oversee a trust that will fund shared equity of properties with the homebuyers — and when the owner sells the home, the trust receives a profit.
Earlier this month, the council voted to support a request for $4 million for the city-university neighborhood stabilization program from the 21st District delegation in the state.
[College Park City Council supports request for state to subsidize graduate housing]
Council members also approved the city-university partnership’s request to write a letter of support for the partnership’s application to the Metropolitan Washington Council of Government’s Housing Affordability Planning Program for a $75,000 grant to would be added to the community trust.
In a third move to support individuals seeking to buy property in College Park, the council expanded a homeownership grant program.
The New Neighbors Homeownership Grant program was created in 2005, and council members have discussed for weeks how to properly expand eligibility, so more people can take advantage of the grants up to $5,000.
The grants are now available to any person working full time for an employer in College Park or a full-time graduate student at the University of Maryland to purchase any home.
Grants up to $10,000 will be available for the purchase of a home rented for at least two years prior to purchase or has been owner-occupied and rented to more than two people, is newly constructed, and located in a neighborhood that has 50 percent or greater single-family homes that serve as rentals. This amendment boosts the city’s goal of converting rental homes in College Park to owner-occupied.
