City of Bowling Green Housing Assistance Programs

General Information

The City of Bowling Green currently administers five housing programs. The Rental Rehabilitation, Mobile Home Repair and Elderly Emergency Home Repair programs are funded through Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Entitlement dollars. The Owner Occupied Rehabilitation and Homeownership Assistance/Rehabilitation programs are funded through the City's Housing Revolving Loan Fund (RLF). This fund was established under the approval of the State of Ohio, Department of Development.

These programs assist very-low, low- and moderate-income households, and are available to City of Bowling Green residents, only. Residents of Wood County , who do not reside in Bowling Green, may find similar program assistance through the Wood County Planning Office, 419-354-9128.

Housing Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) Owner-Occupied Rehabilitation

Loans are provided to very-low, low- and moderate-income level homeowners in amounts ranging, on average, from $15,000 to $38,000 per unit secured by a mortgage. Eligible properties for this program are any single-family dwelling units that have substandard conditions and are in need of rehabilitation, providing:

• The property has an after-rehabilitation appraised value at or below $190,152, based on independent real estate appraisal.
• The property is located within the corporation limits of the City of Bowling Green.
• The property owner is at or below 80 percent of the Wood County median income and has clear title to the property.

Housing RLF Homeownership Assistance/Rehabilitation

This program provides assistance to very-low, low- and moderate-income households that lack sufficient funds to purchase or purchase/rehabilitate a property in need of repair. Loan amounts range, on average, from $1,000 to $39,000. The City will calculate the amount of assistance allowed based on the following:

• The total down-payment required to reduce the housing cost to an amount at or near 30% of the homeowner’s gross monthly income.
• The amount required to correct all deficiencies on the purchase property.

Loan Financial Mechanism for the Housing RLF Programs 

All loans for the above-noted Housing RLF Owner-Occupied Rehabilitation and Homeownership Assistance/Rehabilitation programs are zero interest deferred payment loans (a mortgage is placed on the property) in effect until the property is sold, title is transferred or property ceases to be the primary residence of the applicant. Fifty percent of the loan will be forgiven if the applicant owns the property after the complete tenth year, providing the loan is in good standing and in adherence with other program guidelines.

Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Rental Rehabilitation

In this program, zero interest loans are provided to landlords for a seven-year period. If property is sold or title is transferred before seven years, the loan amount will be due in full. At the end of seven years, the loan will be forgiven. This is provided that the owner has not been found in default of the program requirements, specifically, the one requiring rental to low/moderate-income persons. Defaulting on any program requirement will cause the loan amount to be due in full. A mortgage is placed on the property during the seven-year period. The landlord must put at least 50 percent construction costs into the project. Maximum loans per bedroom size are as follows:

The units must meet Housing Quality Standards (HQS) and Wood County Health, Safety and Sanitation Regulations upon completion of the rehabilitation. Units housing 51 percent or more very low-, low- and/or moderate-income families qualify for funding. 

CDBG Elderly Emergency Home Repair

 

This program funds the repair or replacement of substandard systems for very-low and low-income homeowners 62 years of age or older. The property must be located within the Bowling Green City limits. The maximum grant is $6,000 to repair one substandard item. No mortgages are placed on the property. Two bids and an estimate from the City’s Housing Specialist are required to assure reasonable replacement costs. Substandard systems include, but are not limited to:  roofing, plumbing, heating and electrical problems. If a structure has more than one substandard condition, the owner is encouraged to participate in the City’s Owner-Occupied Housing Rehabilitation program.

 

CDBG Mobile Home Repair

 

This program provides zero interest, forgivable loans to very-low, low- and moderate-income mobile home owners for essential repairs. The maximum loan is $2,500, and there is a requirement that the homeowner maintain principle residency in the unit for three years, after which time the loan is forgiven.

 

Income Eligibility

 

Income eligibility for all programs (except for the Elderly Emergency Repair Program) is limited to households at the moderate-income level (80%) or below.  Income eligibility for the Elderly Emergency Repair Program is limited to households at the low-income level (50%) or lower.  Guidance for determining eligibility is set forth below:

 

          LOW, VERY-LOW- AND EXTREMELY-LOW-INCOME LIMITS*

                                     Based Upon Median Income for Wood County

 

                                               Number of Persons in Household

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                               1             2             3            4            5             6             7             8  

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INCOME      (80%)      33,650    38,500    43,300    48,100    51,950    55,800    59,650    63,500

 

                     (50%)     21,050    24,050    27,050    30,050    32,450    34,850    37,250    39,650

 

                     (30%)     12,650   14,450    16,250     18,050    19,500    20,950   22,400    23,850

 

 

Section 8 Rental Assistance

 

The Section 8 rental assistance program for the City of Bowling Green is administered by Henry Metropolitan Housing Authority in Napoleon, Ohio. For more information on the Section 8 rental assistance program, please call (419) 592-1735.

 

 

 

For more information on the above programs and

application packets, please contact:

Forrest Blake, Housing Specialist

City of Bowling Green    304 N. Church St., 2nd floor

Bowling Green, OH 43402

(419) 354-6221 or (419) 354-6203

bggrants@bgohio.org

 

 

For persons with speech and/or hearing impairments, contact us

through the Ohio Relay Network at:

1-800-750-0750

 

The United States Department of Housing and Urban Development prohibits unlawful discrimination in federally assisted programs based on your race, color, national origin, religion, sex, family status, or disability.