La Pine family gets $50,000 to pay down mortgage

A new program has the power to help families on a fixed income who are struggling to make their mortgage payments. It’s called the Principal Reduction Program, and it pays up to $50,000 to reduce an unpaid mortgage.

Laura and Brian Beebe of La Pine applied for the program and qualified for the $50,000 in assistance. They live with their daughter, Gabrielle, and their three dogs. They’ve lived there for almost 11 years.

“We’ve struggled a little bit these past few years,” Laura said Wednesday. “We’re both disabled and we have a 14-year-old, so it’s a little bit of a struggle.”

The program is designed for homeowners on a fixed income who are struggling to make their mortgage payments. The Oregon Homeownership Stabilization Initiative and Central Oregon’s NeighborImpact make it possible.

“We really needed it, and I didn’t even think it was real,” Laura said.

The program will help them reduce the unpaid mortgage on their home. It means a lower monthly payment.

NeighborImpact’s lending director, Michael Hinton, said, “I can’t think of any other program that is that aggressive and that generous to just outright pay down principal on a mortgage in order to get someone in a better position.”

He said to qualify for the program, a homeowner’s income cannot exceed 125 percent of the state median income. For example, that would be just over $87,000 for a family of four.

“A program like this is very helpful in that we can keep people in their home, we can keep their payments affordable, and we can reduce the stress on the system of trying to find new housing for people that have to move,” Hinton said.

For someone like the Beebes, it means a big weight has been lifted from their shoulders.

“We really want to leave something to our child, so that’s going to help us get it paid off before we’re gone, so that she won’t have a bill and a mortgage to pay,” Laura said.

To apply or learn more about this program, applications are available on the neighbor impact website.

NeighborImpact is a 21 Cares For Kids partner.

For more information http://www.neighborimpact.org/services/home-ownership/