USDA Rural Development State Director Terry Brunner announced today his agency set a record in the number of home loans produced in the 2013 fiscal year that ended on September 30, 2013.
In making the announcement Brunner said, “In the last five years USDA increased the number of home loans and grants made across the state.” Brunner added, “We attribute this success to excellent staff work and the development of community partners that help us deliver our programs deeper into rural communities.”
The increase in home loans bumped New Mexico from 47th in the nation to 24th in providing USDA financial assistance in the form of direct loans and grants to those seeking to buy a home or fix up their existing house. In FY-2013, $76,217,039 was made in home loans, guarantees and grants compared to $70,665,820 in FY-2012. In FY-2013 this amounted to 624 obligations estimated to have affected the lives of 1,872 rural New Mexicans allowing them to buy or build a home or upgrade the house they own.
When looking at the number of applications for the housing programs that were submitted Brunner said, “We feel that these numbers could have been higher but so many New Mexicans face credit issues that prevented them from qualifying for assistance. To combat this, we will continue to work with non-profits and other assistance organizations that help New Mexicans repair their credit and increase their financial literacy. Individuals that have a poor credit history and seek the assistance of credit repair organizations often turn out to be our best, most reliable borrowers.”
Brunner added, “Another factor is that many people do not return a completed application and ultimately the deadline lapses and the application is dropped.”