Low-income families living in Belton, Texas, could be eligible to receive a brand-new home on their lot or have their existing property repaired without spending a dollar under the HOME Program for residents.
A low-income family of four or fewer could receive a three-bedroom and two-bathroom home for free as long as they own and occupy the home they currently reside in; they live in the Belton city limits; the property is free from liens and other encumbrances; the home is in poor condition; and they have no delinquent property taxes.
To receive the free new home, or have the existing property repaired for free, the family must live in the house for longer than five years before selling the property.
“They need to pick up an application. They need to submit the documents that are asked for. They have to have title to their house,” Karen Walker, consultant and manager of Home Program, told FOX 44, listing the application requirements.
“It can have multiple owners. There can be multiple people as long as one owner is living in that house as the principal residence and has a homestead exemption and low to moderate income and clear title.”
For more information on how to apply, Belton residents should contact Walker at 512-696-4056, Jo-EllGuzman at [email protected] or 254-933-5813.
Belton, 57 miles away from Austin and 127 miles away from Dallas, is described by Niche.com, a website ranking college cities across the U.S., as one of the best places to live in Texas. As of 2020, the city counted a population of 23,138, according to the last official U.S. Census estimates. Calculations by the World Population Review estimates the population has since grown to 25,848.
While many are still moving to Belton from Austin, Los Angeles, and Dallas, only 0.14 percent of homebuyers across the nation searched to move into the city from outside metropolitan areas. Most of those moving out of the city were leaving for Waco, Texas, Colorado Springs, Colorado, and Houston, Texas.
In June, the median sale price of a home in Belton was $280,000, down 19.4 percent compared to a year earlier, according to Redfin data. It was lower than the statewide median sale price of $354,200 in the same month, down 1.1 percent year-over-year.
Prices are falling in parts of Texas due to a surge in inventory, though sales on the state-level are climbing: in June, sales were up by 22.9 percent in Texas compared to a year earlier. That’s not the case of Belton, where homes are staying on the market for 52 days before going under contract—well past the 30 days that would make them “stale” listings.
Uncommon Knowledge
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