Sold! Sharon Housing Trust sells first affordable house to local residents

SHARON – One is often described as the loneliest number but in the case of the Sharon Housing Trust the sale of the first affordable house built in Sharon is cause for celebration.

"Although the process of selecting candidates took longer than expected, the selection of Terence Miller and Nicole Reccia was worth the wait," Said Melinda Sweet, president of the Sharon Housing Trust.

"Next time we will want to be sure that the applicants are involved at the beginning. That way the family will have input into some of the features of the house and can move in right away," she added. "This time, our first, we literally learned on the job."

The lucky winners of the applicant pool were both born in Sharon Hospital and have lived their whole lives in the Sharon area. Miller owns Roaring Oaks Florist in Sharon and Reccia works at The Salisbury School. They closed on the house on Oct. 17 — and headed to off to Las Vegas to be married the following day. They will return to their new home in late October as Mr. and Mrs. Terence Miller.

Suitably, the location of their new home is at the intersection of Millerton Road and Lovers Lane.

The home is a 1,842-square foot, three-bedroom, two-and-a-half bathroom Colonial-style house on 1.1 acres. Its porch has views of the scenic marshlands below. The Millers paid $175,000 for it, which is significantly less than its estimated value of around $300,000. According to state statistics, the median price for a house sold in Sharon in 2006 was $360,000.

The Housing Trust was able to get extra-low mortgage rates as well as additional financing that only has to be paid back after the house is sold.

Insurance and utility costs each month have been calculated as roughly equivalent to what a family would pay for a rental in Sharon.

To help in their efforts to bring affordable housing to Sharon, the trust has been able to locate some significant financial aid. According to Sweet, they have been able to obtain up to $50,000 in supplemental financing. Most of that will not have to be reimbursed.

"Such extra funds could mean the opportunity of home ownership to a family who might have otherwise been unable to finance it on their won," Sweet said. "This will allow them to build equity as opposed to paying rent. We estimate that, even though they don’t own the land, if the buyer of one of our homes sells it in 30 years, the equity as measured against the increases in the Consumer Price Index, plus improvements, will be around $700,000. That’s pretty good appreciation for a permanently affordable house."

To apply for affordable housing with the trust in Sharon, applicants must either work or live in Sharon and meet specific income limits. Income cannot exceed 80 percent of $79,600 for a family of four.

Another option: qualifying for a Connecticut State Financing Authority mortgage income. Limits are $82,000 for up to two persons and $93,400 for three or more.

The Housing Trust received 13 applications; 11 of them met the basic qualifications. The average family size was three, average years worked in Sharon was five and the average number of years lived in Sharon was 13.

The average income was $47,000 with a range from $31, 000 to $70,000. The trust is now planning its next house and accepting applications.

Apply by going to sharonhousingtrust.org, or by calling Sue Cummings at 860-364-0276 or Sharon Tingley at 860-364-5321.