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TSAHC, Texas REALTORS® launch "Get Ready: Making Texans Homeowners for Life" campaign

Texas REALTORS® partnered with the Texas State Affordable Housing Corporation to promote the benefits of homebuyer education.

April 07, 2014 — Austin

The Texas State Affordable Housing Corporation (TSAHC) has partnered with the Texas REALTORS® (TAR) to promote the benefits of taking a quality homebuyer education course before purchasing a home. Homebuyer education is a class, workshop, or online course aimed at potential homebuyers who are either first-time homebuyers or who desire to educate themselves about the homebuying process.

The joint campaign, “Get Ready: Making Texans Homeowners for Life,” will work to increase awareness of these programs among potential homebuyers, Texas REALTORS®, lenders, loan officers, and housing industry partners in Texas.

“Studies have shown that homebuyers who receive pre-purchase education are one-third less likely to fall behind on their mortgages by 90 days or more, compared to homebuyers who didn’t take a homebuyer education course,” said David Long, president of the Texas State Affordable Housing Corporation. “We know that Texas REALTORS® want their clients to be successful homeowners, so partnering with the Texas REALTORS® to spread the word about these programs to the public was a natural fit.”

A quality homebuyer education class provides detailed information about the technical, financial and practical aspects of buying a home and becoming a successful homeowner. Topics often include understanding credit, reducing debt, determining if you are ready to buy a home, understanding mortgage loans, avoiding predatory loans, navigating the homebuying process, finding local and state downpayment assistance programs, and understanding the ongoing responsibilities of homeownership.

Dan Hatfield, chairman of the Texas REALTORS®, explained, “The Texas REALTORS® has worked with TSAHC in the past through our ‘United Texas’ program, which educates Texas REALTORS® about the resources available for clients seeking affordable housing. This program takes that partnership one step further, empowering Texas REALTORS® to help their clients ‘get ready’ and become homeowners for life.”

TSAHC provides access to homebuyer education in several ways, beginning with the Texas Financial Toolbox. An online resource, the toolbox helps homebuyers identify homebuyer education programs available to them as well as financial and credit counseling resources, homeownership assistance programs, and foreclosure prevention counseling. For more information on the toolbox and the campaign, visit GetReadyTX.org.

About the Texas State Affordable Housing Corporation

The Texas State Affordable Housing Corporation (TSAHC) was created in 1994 as a self-sustaining nonprofit housing organization. TSAHC believes that every Texan deserves the opportunity to live in safe, decent, and affordable housing. The organization's programs target the housing needs of low-income families and other underserved populations in Texas who do not have acceptable housing options through conventional financial channels. All TSAHC programs are offered statewide, with special attention given to rural areas and other select target areas. Learn more at tsahc.org.