Utah Governor Huntsman Signs Bill for New Homes Grant

Mar 19, 2009 -- Salt Lake City - Utah Governor Jon Huntsman today signed Senate Bill 260, Housing Relief Restricted Special Revenue Fund. Upon his signature, he immediately directed the Utah Housing Corporation to begin dispersing 1,600 $6,000 grants to homebuyers purchasing a newly constructed home.

With more than 3,000 unsold newly built homes available and 18,000 Utah construction workers who lost jobs last year, this program is intended to directly deal with the most distressed area of our economy.

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"It is up to the states to use the federal stimulus money in a way that truly has a beneficial impact on our economy. This is an immediate stimulus targeted at the weakest area of Utah's economy," Governor Jon Huntsman said. "This investment of $10 million will result in 8,800 jobs in the market and $324 million in wages into our economy. This boost is critical for us to reverse our current position."

Additionally, Governor Huntsman is directing $1.8 million of discretionary federal stimulus money to provide foreclosure prevention and mitigation services through the Department of Community and Culture. Currently in our state, 15,000 homes are in foreclosure, doubling since 2007. The funds will be dedicated to prevention efforts through training and counselors. The Home Run Program will be administered by the Utah Housing Corporation. The details of the program can be found at UtahHousingCorp.org.

Source: Utah Governor