Purchase Assistance for New Construction

Step 1.Check your eligibility

Borrowers/Participants must meet program income guidelines. When determining household income, all household members are counted, regardless of who is determined eligible/qualified for the first mortgage loan. All household income of people 18 years and older who will reside in the property must be included.

The borrower is not required to be a first-time home buyer to qualify for assistance, but they cannot own another property at the time of closing. Borrowers/Participants must provide documentation of their household income and assets along with other program requirements.

Homebuyers must contribute at least 1% of the sales/purchase price toward the closing from their own funds. Homebuyers must not have received assistance from the city of Clearwater in the past unless the assistance has been paid in full, a satisfaction of mortgage executed and recorded in public records or unless there is some form of hardship (divorce, permanent layoff, physical or mental disability, fire, flood or natural disaster or the death of a family member).

Homebuyers and residents must be U.S. citizens or permanent resident aliens.

Check Your Income Eligibility

Step 2.Check a property's eligibility

The property must be located within city of Clearwater incorporated limits. You can use the Pinellas County Property Appraiser tool to see if the home you’d like to buy is within city of Clearwater limits. The tax code of CW, CWD or CWDO will appear if your property is eligible.

Step 3.Contact a bank or mortgage lender

Contact a lender to prequalify for a first mortgage. 

Step 4.Contact a qualified developer

To benefit from the Purchase Assistance for New Construction Program, the home must be built by a qualified developer or builder who will construct the home through partnership with the city. However, if you are working with a developer or builder that is not on this list, your project may still qualify. Below is a list of qualified single-family home builders familiar with this program:

Habitat for Humanity of Pinellas and West Pasco Counties
14010 Roosevelt Blvd, Suite 704
Clearwater, FL 33762
Phone: (727) 536-4755
Hours: Monday – Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Tampa Bay Neighborhood Housing Services
608 North Garden Ave.
Clearwater, FL 33755
Phone: (727) 442-4155

Suncoast Housing Connections
2139 N.E. Coachman Road, Suite 1
Clearwater, FL 33765
Phone: (727) 442-7075 

Step 5.Complete a homebuyer education workshop

All borrowers must attend a Department of Housing and Urban (HUD)-certified Homebuyers Education Workshop.

Prior to entering the world of homeownership, completing a homebuyer education course is highly recommended, and depending on the type of assistance to be provided, it may be mandatory. If you are interested in exploring this type of opportunity, contact one of our partners that provides HUD-certified homebuyer education counseling.

Workshops are usually eight hours long and held over one or more sessions during a single weekend. At the end of the workshop, you will receive a certificate of completion. This certificate is good for two years. 

Below is a list of HUD-approved agencies that are currently contracted through the city of Clearwater:

• Tampa Bay Neighborhood Housing Services
  Purchase Assistance and Homeowner Education Classes

  608 N. Garden Ave.
  Clearwater, FL 33755
  Phone: (727) 442-4155
  Email:  dharder@tampabaynhs.org
  
  

• Suncoast Housing Connections (FKA - Tampa Bay Community Development Corp.)
  Purchase Assistance and Homeowner Education Classes
  2139 NE Coachman Road
  Clearwater, Florida 33758
  (727) 442-7075
  (727) 442-4575
• Email: ellen@suncoasthc.org

For more information, contact Chuck Lane, Assistant Director, Economic Development and Housing Department at (727) 444-7489, or Terry Malcolm-Smith, Housing Programs Administrator at (727) 444-7167.