As part of the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s [1] mission to increase homeownership among credit-worthy low- to moderate-income people, the agency has announced that it is extending the Exclusive Listing Period for HUD owned REO properties to 30 days.
This is a direct result of a September 1 announcement from the current presidential administration that they will work to increase the supply of affordable homes available to first-time and low- and moderate-income homebuyers by extending the time that HUD REO properties are available to owner-occupant and “mission minded” buyers.
As such, single-family properties listed on the departments exclusive listing site, HUD HomeStore [2], can no longer be bid on by businesses or investors for 30 days. The homes must be listed as “insured” or “insured with escrow” to qualify.
Currently, bidding on REO properties are limited to owner/occupants, governmental entities, and HUD-approved non-profits for the first 15 days after the property is listed. These properties must qualify for FHA-insured financing under the 203(b) program which stipulates that the house must meet their minimum property standards and typically only need cosmetic repairs under $10,000.
“FHA is actively supporting the Administration’s efforts to increase the supply of affordable housing and provide more opportunities to those who have traditionally faced barriers to homeownership,” said Lopa P. Kolluri [3], the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Housing and the Federal Housing Administration. “By extending the time frame individuals have to bid on an REO property, we are offering families a better chance to purchase a quality HUD-owned home to live in, build equity, and create generational wealth.”
This move was made after the agency studied the proposed change and found that it would create no “undue risk” to the Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund.
Previously, on December 1, HUD executed a competitive bid HUD-held vacant loan sale where it provided priority bidding opportunities on 50% of the mortgage notes in multi-loan pools to non-profits and units of local government. A record 23 mission-driven non-profit organizations successfully participated in the sale, with 11 non-profit organizations winning pools and acquiring the full 50% of the total number of loans offered for sale.