Builders are creating online educational programs to help potential buyers clean up their credit and obtain loans.
"'It becomes a win-win,' said Dan Klinger, president of K. Hovnanian American Mortgage, which doesn't charge potential buyers to work with Debt Resource USA. 'We get to sell one of our homes, and the customer gets to clean up his credit and learn good, fiscal responsibility at the same time.'"
"Though no one expects the programs to significantly increase sales -- Hovnanian reports just 51 graduates in the last 18 months -- every sale counts for builders as they see earnings plummet, orders tank and cancellations rise as the worst housing correction in decades shows few signs of letting up."
"The programs address everything from debt to income ratios to why opening a store-branded card at the cash register might not be a good deal. They also teach students about budgeting -- not spending a fortune on furniture for the new house or forgoing that daily latte to build up a safety net should a pipe break or the homeowner get laid off."
Read the full story: Builders Help Buyers to Help Themselves
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
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Eagle County Government
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
Nashville Planning Department
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello
Journal of the American Planning Association