Help from the city

First-time buyers and those with low to moderate incomes have many places that will offer help. Here are some of them:

Seattle programs

Teachers: The city of Seattle offers teachers in the Seattle Public Schools District special types of loans if they earn at or below 80 percent of county median income. Eligibility criteria and other details are available by calling Evergreen Home Loans at 206-938-8900.

City employees, UW employees, teachers, union members: Seattle works with HomeStreet Bank (www.homestreet.com/hthl) on the Hometown Loan program, which helps city employees, teachers, University of Washington employees, some union members, and others with aid; details are available online or call 206-628-0207.

Other programs: The city of Seattle offers a variety of homebuying assistance programs to buyers with different qualifications. Go to: www.seattle.gov/housing/buying/programs.htm

Other area programs

Home for Good: www.buildingequity.org

This nonprofit offers an “Equity First” program that will buy a property and lease it to a prospective buyer until they can afford to acquire it — at a non-marked-up price.

Income limits (no more than 120 percent of area’s median income) do apply.

Homesight:

www.homesightwa.orgA nonprofit that offers homebuyer advice, financial counseling and purchase assistance loans as well as affordable housing for first-time and lower-income buyers in both King County and Snohomish County: 206-723-4355 or 888-749-4663.

Homestead Community Land Trust: www.homesteadclt.orgThis program offers buyers assistance to purchase a home but Homestead owns the land the home sits on — which is how the program is able to offer a home at lower cost than would be the case if buyers purchased both home and land. For more information, check online or call 206-323-1227.

Hope for Homes: Participants in the United Way’s “Individual development account” funds matching program could qualify for as much as $45,000 in down-payment assistance.

The United Way (www.uwkc.org), Urban League of Metropolitan Seattle (www.urbanleague.org), or International District Housing Alliance (www.apialliance.org) can offer more details.

Washington Homeownership Center:

www.homeownership-wa.orgThe center offers basic homeownership classes and homebuyer resources on an ongoing basis. Information is available online or at 866-600-6466.

Washington State Housing Finance Commission: www.wshfc.org

Provides free seminars on homebuying and operates programs to help.

Upcoming event

Parade of Affordable Homes: www.affordablehomeparade.org

During the weekends of June 16-17 and June 23-24 a number of organizations will pool resources for a tour of affordable homes and fairs in Tacoma, Seattle and Lynnwood featuring resources for budget-minded buyers.

Copyright © 2007 The Seattle Times Company

Home Trends

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — Some of the latest trends in homebuilding and remodeling were not too hard to spot. Is anyone surprised that Americans, already living in monster homes, want even bigger ones? But there were some developments we never saw coming. Here’s a few that Mark Nash, author of Real Estate A-Z for Buying and Selling a Home, has gleaned from a survey he conducted questioning 923 real estate agents, brokers and industry executives.

Upscale garages: Who knew that those smelly, greasy spaces overstuffed with junk and empty boxes would morph into showplaces for Home Improvement types? “Today’s owners want [garages] decked out with cabinet and storage systems, matching refrigerators, air conditioning and residential looking flooring,” says Nash. The Web site contractor.com reports a garage remodeling starts at around $7,500 and goes up, sometimes steeply, from there depending on size and just how nice you want it. Nash, a real estate broker himself, says he has had home sellers so infatuated with their upscale car storage unit that they become livid when house hunters get a bit of dirt on the floor.

Softer market = higher price?

When home sales are transitioning from hot to less than rip roaring, the market sends out mixed, sometimes seemingly illogical, signals. That’s exactly what happened last month in every Puget Sound county. Compared with a year earlier, the number of homes for sale was up by 40 percent or more. Pending sales — deals signed last month but not yet completed — were down from 2 to 25 percent depending on the county. Yet prices continued to increase, according to May sales figures released today by the Northwest Multiple Listing Service.Why would prices still climb when logic says they shouldn’t?