GROUND BREAKING ON DETROIT’S WEST SIDE FOR AFFORDABLE,NEW HOME DEVELOPMENT

Neighborhood Revitalization Is Underway

Detroit, MI – Congressman John Conyers Jr. (D-Mich.) and Detroit Mayor Kwame M. Kilpatrick, joined with Community Planning Association, Freddie Mac (NYSE:FRE), Charter One Bank, Fifth Third Bank and West Town Homes, LLC, to break ground today on a 33-unit modular home development called West Town Homes I in Detroit's west side. The development is one of the latest efforts to revitalize the community by providing affordable, quality homes available for purchase in the City.

These homes will be concentrated in the area bounded by the Southfield Freeway on the west, Greenfield Road on the east, Joy Road on the north and Tireman Avenue on the south.

The Bungalow style homes will feature basements, either detached or attached garages, and 40-foot frontage lots. There will be 13 1,400 square-foot, three-bedroom homes and 20 1,468 square-foot four-bedroom homes. The homes should be ready for occupancy in mid-2005.

West Town Homes I will be developed by West Town Homes, LLC–an organization formed by Community Planning Association (the local nonprofit Community Development Corporation serving the area) and Urban Entity, Inc. Urban Construction will build the homes. Scott Monchnick & Associates is the architect. Charter One Bank is providing the construction financing. Charter One Bank and Fifth Third Bank offer several types of affordable mortgage products to potential homebuyers. Freddie Mac purchases the eligible mortgages from lenders.

Additional organizations working to make this development a reality are the City of Detroit, Wayne County Housing Division, Detroit Brownfield Redevelopment Authority, Michigan Land Bank Task Track Authority and Faith Community Homebuyers.

West Town Homes, LLC, also has plans for the second phase of development, West Town Homes II. Groundbreaking is expected to begin in late 2005 and be completed in 2006. West Town II will feature 117 units of bungalow and colonial style homes. These homes bill be bounded by I-96 on the north, Plymouth Road on the south, Greenfield Road on the east and Southfield Freeway on the west.

"I enthusiastically embrace the West Town initiative which will create 150 affordable homes during the first two phases," said Congressman Conyers. "As one of the most comprehensive residential developments in the Herman Gardens area, this project makes the dream of homeownership attainable to many who would otherwise never become homeowners."

"We are deeply honored and grateful to have the opportunity to provide new housing development in the west side of Detroit," said Stephanie Madden, executive director of Community Planning Association. "This new housing development will revitalize our community, enhance the dignity and pride of our community and encourage investors to invest in our community once again. We are now realizing the Dream of West Town. Detroit is the best place to live."

"Through the West Town development, Freddie Mac is helping working families who are struggling to find reasonably priced, quality homes in Detroit," said Dwight Robinson, senior vice president of Corporate Relations for Freddie Mac. "We are helping individuals achieve their dream of homeownership."

"Fifth Third Bank will offer homebuyers down payment assistance of $2,500 to purchase their new homes," said Byna Elliott, Vice President of Fifth Third Bank. "The West Town homes project exemplifies the programs that the Bank supports which is a collaboration of public and private partnerships that provide economic opportunity and wealth building to our families."

Local lenders will provide flexible mortgage products that offer low downpayment requirements and low cash-to-close options. In some cases, qualified borrowers can obtain a mortgage by putting down no more than $500 from their own funds. Freddie Mac plans to purchase the eligible mortgages to ensure a steady supply of mortgage credit for additional homebuyers.

To purchase a West Town home, potential homebuyers must complete the approved homeownership-counseling program offered by West Town Homes, LLC, in coordination with Faith Community Homebuyers.

Pre and post-purchase counseling programs are critical to successfully expanding affordable homeownership, according to a 2001 Freddie Mac study that found such programs can effectively help borrowers make their mortgage payments on time and reduce mortgage delinquencies by as much as one-third.

Additional information about the homes:

Homes will feature a U-shaped kitchen with 28-cubic foot side-by-side refrigerators, 30-inch self-cleaning electric ranges, dishwashers, laminate countertops, oak cabinets and breakfast bars.

The bungalow-style homes will have a covered porch entry that leads into a living room. The living rooms have eight-foot ceilings that can be upgraded to nine feet throughout the first floor. There is a separate dining room adjacent to the kitchen and a first floor master suite with a bedroom, sitting area, walk-in closet, and an attached full bath with double vanity and linen-closet. The second floor has two large bedrooms and a common shared bath.

For more information about this homeownership initiative, contact Community Planning Association at 313-836-4323.

Community Planning Association is a 501 © (3) Community Development Corporation and a Community Housing Development Organization. CPA's boundaries are I-96 Expressway on the North, Tireman on the south, Southfield on the west, and Schaefer on the east. The organization is charitable, geographic, democratic, accountable, comprehensive in vision, multifaceted, empowering and pragmatic. CPA collaborates with the City of Detroit, Wayne County, Revitalife, MSHDA, the public sector, the Non profit sector and the private sector. CPA's purpose is to provide to our service area a variety of innovative and constructive neighborhood revitalization opportunities aimed at improving the physical, economic, social conditions, and overall quality of life for our neighborhoods.

Freddie Mac is a stockholder-owned corporation established by Congress in 1970 to create a continuous flow of funds to mortgage lenders in support of homeownership and rental housing. Freddie Mac purchases mortgages from lenders and packages them into securities that are sold to investors. Over the years, Freddie Mac has made home possible for one in six homebuyers in America.

###