July 1, 2002

Housing and Urban Development Secretary Mel Martinez told the mayors at the plenary luncheon on Saturday, June 15, that President Bush was the first president to dedicate a full month calling the nation's attention to homeownership. In his weekly radio address, the Secretary said, President Bush had outlined the initiatives that the administration will pursue to increase homeownership in America, especially with minorities. Secretary Martinez reported that the President would go to Atlanta to follow up his radio address, and to "challenge the real estate industry and others to join government and non-profits to increase minority homeownership."

The Secretary spoke of the benefits of homeownership that strengthens families and provides stability for children. Martinez said that the housing industry had held the economy together during the recent economic slowdown. He added that during the year of 2001, forty percent of the growth of the economy could be attributed to housing.

In his radio address, President Bush described three initiatives of the administration. He said: "The single greatest hurdle to first time homeownership is a high down payment requirement that can put a home out of reach. So my administration is proposing the American Dream Down Payment Fund. When a low-income family is qualified to buy a home, but comes up short on the down payment, the American Dream Down Payment Fund will help provide the needed funds. We estimate that this fund will open the door to homeownership for 40, 000 low-income families annually."

President Bush also proposed a single-family affordable housing credit. He said: "Over the next five years, this will provide developers nearly $2.4 billion in tax credits for building affordable single-family housing in distressed areas. These credits will make 200,000 new homes available over its first five years to low income purchasers."