Low-interest loans would put county workers in foreclosed homes
By Jason Jacks
Loudoun officials are working on a plan that will rid the county of some of its foreclosed homes while supplying much-needed affordable housing to county employees.Now being hashed out is a proposal that would allow the county to provide low-interest loans to some Loudoun teachers, deputies, firefighters and other county workers when they purchase foreclosed properties. The plan will be unveiled at the Board of Supervisors' June 3 meeting.
Since the beginning of 2007, about 3,700 homes – most in Sterling and Leesburg -- have been foreclosed upon in Loudoun, according to RealtyTrac.com. And more appear on the way.
"People are desperate for help,” said Antwaun Jackson, a housing intervention social worker in the Department of Family Services. “Most of the people we talk to are already 60 to 90 days in the foreclosure process."
Jackson said she is currently fielding "three to five" calls a day from people seeking advice on avoiding foreclosure. Most, she said, live in eastern Loudoun.
While this plan, proposed by Board of Supervisors Chairman Scott York (I-at large) and similar to ones in Fairfax and Prince William counties, would do little to help these people, it would assist in putting others in the glut of homes now sitting empty in Loudoun.
According to Loudoun budget officer Ben Mays, money to pay for this plan would initially come from the county's Housing Trust Fund, which currently totals about $4 million and was set aside to fund affordable housing programs.
Supervisor Eugene Delgaudio (R), whose Sterling District has been hit hardest by the housing meltdown, called the plan an economic "shot in the pants for people who would otherwise buy outside of Loudoun."
Besides aiding government workers, Delgaudio also said such a plan would be a boost to Loudoun's own bottom line since it would put taxpayers back in vacant homes. He said Loudoun lost $3 million in tax money last fiscal year because of foreclosures.
"If we don't do anything, we will continue to lose millions," he said.
Of the government's 3,100 workers, 55 percent reside outside of Loudoun, according to D.L. Fosque, the county's human resources director. School officials said nearly 40 percent of their several thousand teachers live elsewhere. Why the exodus? Home prices, for one, officials regularly say.
The median sale price of a home in Loudoun was $350,000 in April, compared to $202,000 for the nation, according to the National Association of Realtors.
And despite falling prices, Loudoun Sheriff Steve Simpson said some his "young deputies" are still finding the local housing market "almost impossible" to penetrate. Not surprisingly, he's a supporter of this home-loan plan.
"Anything we can do to enable our public servants to live where they work," he said, "is a good thing."
Contact the reporter at jjacks@timespapers.com