The Home Ownership Program (HOP)

Applications may be mailed the Lake MHA Office: 189 First St., Painesville, OH 44077 or faxed to (440) 354-5008. You must be a current voucher program participant and in good standing in order to apply for the Homeownership Program.

This program is ONLY for current Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) participants.

Although largely a rental assistance program, Lake MHA also administers a Homeownership Program.  This program allows qualified families who are current participants on the HCV Program, the opportunity to purchase a house with Lake MHA, subsidizing a part of the monthly mortgage payment the family makes to a lending institution.  Lake MHA does not provide loans, and a family must be able to qualify for a home loan on their own.

Requirements for the Program

To be eligible for the Homeownership Program families must meet these requirements:

Must be a current Lake Metropolitan Housing Authority HCV participant for at least 1-year and be in good standing

Not have any type of outstanding debt owed to Lake MHA
Must be in full compliance with their lease and HCV program requirements
Meet minimum income requirements –
- Non-elderly/non-disabled families –
  - The income of adult family members, who will own the home, must not be less than $14,500 (the Federal minimum hourly wage multiplied by 2000).
- Elderly/disabled families –
  - The income of adult family members, who will own the home, must not be less than $11,604 (the monthly Federal Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefit for an individual living alone multiplied by 12). Welfare assistance cannot be counted in determining whether the family meets the minimum income requirement.

Some other requirements:

Must complete Financial Fitness and Homebuyer Education courses.
Participant must meet minimum down payment requirement of 3% or more of the purchase price with at least 1% of the purchase price coming from the family’s own personal resources; the other 2% can come from another source.
The unit must be located in Lake County.
The unit has to pass a Housing Standards inspection conducted by Lake MHA.
The family must choose a qualified independent inspector and pay for an independent inspection to be done.