Steamboat Pilot & Today

Hayden — Five lots in Hayden's Sagewood subdivision are designated for special financing to government and nonprofit employees.

Realtor Mark J. "Dutch" Elting and developer Tom Hallin are teaming with Bill Leeson at First National Bank of the Rockies to offer government employees, law officers, teachers, United Way employees and other nonprofits a special financing rate of 10 percent down on lots.

Elting said it is the first time that a program like this has been offered to designated employees in Routt County and the idea came from Hallin, who has a long history of working with the United Way in Denver and had worked with similar projects in Summit County.

Hallin first suggested giving special financing to United Way workers and Elting said from there they decided to extend it to government workers, who also struggle to find affordable housing.

"The social infrastructure requires school teachers and police officers. We have to have them and they have to have a place to live," Elting said.

The special financing is for employees that work in Routt and Moffat counties and are not presently homeowners. They could include police, sheriff and state patrol employees, schoolteachers, courthouse employees and those working for non-profit organizations.

Interested buyers must also agree their long-term goal is home ownership and not speculation.

Unlike the standard 25 percent down banks require for most lots, the special financing would be a downpayment of 10 percent with 10-year financing.

And that 15-percent difference is a substantial amount when buying lots that range from $40,000 to $58,750.

Leeson at First National Bank of the Rockies in Hayden said for buyers looking to purchase a $45,000 lot, they would have to put just $4,500 down compared to the $11,250 on a program with 25 percent down.

Although homeowners can go anywhere to get a loan on a home and finance it through a second mortgage, Leeson said loans for lots are usually done locally.

"When you are buying a lot, you are almost always going to have to deal with a relatively local lending institution that is familiar with the town and the property," Leeson said.

Even with the special financing, Leeson said buyers still have to have normal credit standing, meaning they must have the income to make the payments and a good credit history.

The Sagewood subdivision is also offering a standard financing of 20 percent through First National Bank of the Rockies. And Elting said total cost of homes in the subdivision should range from $200,000 to $220,000.

For people having trouble buying lots for under $100,000 in Steamboat, Sagewood meets a high demand for affordable housing, Elting said.

"It is fantastic for a new home to be less than $220,000 and one that has three bedrooms and two bathrooms," Elting said. "That is what we think is going to sell like hot cakes.

"It is hard to find condos for that much."

So far, six of the 30 Sagewood lots have closed with 12 more under contract and scheduled to close in September and October.