SPARTANBURG CITY, COUNTY, AND HOUSING AUTHORITY JOIN FREDDIE MAC AND BB&T BANK TO LAUNCH NEW HOMEOWNERSHIP INITIATIVE

New Initiative Unites Flexible Mortgages with Aggressive Outreach, Counseling

Spartanburg, SC – Officials from the City of Spartanburg and Spartanburg County joined leaders from the Spartanburg Housing Authority, Freddie Mac, Branch Banking & Trust Co. (BB&T) and The Palmetto Bank today to launch a new housing initiative with the potential to help hundreds of families become homeowners. The initiative combines flexible credit mortgage products, state-of-the-art financial counseling tools and a network of non-profit organizations to reach families who think that homeownership is out of their reach. The program will be managed from the Homeownership Resource Center, a new facility created to provide residents with the information they need to become homeowners.

"This plan to increase lending activity, rehabilitate our neighborhoods, and increase home ownership is a critical part of our community's commitment to our neighborhoods and our citizens," said Spartanburg Mayor William Barnet III. "We applaud all of the partners who have come together to continue the momentum and encouragement of this process. The combination of education, counseling, and innovation that this represents is a wonderful advancement for the entire Spartanburg community".

"Freddie Mac is excited to be a part of such an ambitious effort to make the dream of homeownership real for more families here in Spartanburg," said Vaughn Irons, National Director of Housing and Community Investment. "The approach of bringing information directly into the community through committed and respected organizations, and working closely with lenders such as BB&T and Palmetto Bank has proven to work."

Over the past five years, Freddie Mac has purchased $4.2 billion worth of mortgages and made home possible for more than 32,000 families in the greater Spartanburg metropolitan area. Through this initiative, Freddie Mac will build upon its ongoing efforts to expand homeownership opportunities in the Spartanburg community.

A major tool within the Spartanburg Housing Initiative is Freddie Mac’s new Home Possible^® suite of mortgage products. The Home Possible mortgage provides loans up to 100 percent, helping more borrowers acquire single-family homes or refinance. Ninety-seven percent LTV mortgages are also available for families purchasing one-to-four unit properties. Both the zero and three percent downpayment versions of Home Possible allow borrowers to contribute as little as $500 from their personal funds and have flexible credit requirements.

Thomas F. Eller, Jr. Senior Vice President of BB&T, said, " It is BB&T's mission to make the world a better place to live by helping our clients achieve economic success and financial security, and making the communities in which we work better places to be." Eller added that, "BB&T is committed to collaborating with the Spartanburg Housing Authority, HUD, Freddie Mac, as well as the City and County, to develop and offer flexible mortgage products to Spartanburg County's first time homebuyers, low-to-moderate income borrowers, and minority and immigrant populations."

William B. Ferguson, vice president of Mortgage Loans of Palmetto State Bank sees his institution’s participation as part of its continuing service to the community. "As The Palmetto Bank approaches our 100th anniversary as the Upstate’s leading community bank, we are pleased to continue providing affordable homeownership opportunities to the Spartanburg community," said Ferguson.

The Homeownership Resource Center (HRC) is a key component of the initiative. The HRC will not only provide the tools and support necessary to get families into homes so they can realize the economic and self-empowerment benefits of owning a home, but also provide counseling and guidance to keep families in their homes.

"We are very excited about this initiative and we anticipate that it will increase our ability to assist households to transition toward homeownership," said Roy Johnson, executive director of the Spartanburg Housing Authority. "A single approach does not adequately address the affordable housing crisis; multiple strategies must be deployed. This effort recognizes the need for multiple solutions that in the end will increase homeownership outcomes for more Spartanburg families."

Trained mortgage and credit counselors will have access to CounselorMax^®, a web-based training tool that helps counselors develop the best financial and housing plan for potential homebuyers. Once clients have successfully completed a financial work plan, they are referred to BB&T or Palmetto Bank for a mortgage loan.

The HRC is also setting up special ATM-style kiosks that will provide around-the-clock information about the Spartanburg Housing Initiative, as well as information on the home buying process, financial literacy and credit counseling. The kiosks will be located at the Homeownership Resource Center and at City Hall.

Families interested in learning more about the Spartanburg Housing Initiative should contact the Homeownership Resource Center at 864-596-HOME (4663)

Freddie Mac is a stockholder-owned company established by Congress in 1970 to support homeownership and rental housing. Freddie Mac fulfills its mission by purchasing residential mortgages and mortgage-related securities, which it finances primarily by issuing mortgage-related securities and debt instruments in the capital markets. Over the years, Freddie Mac has made home possible for one in six homebuyers and two million renters in America.

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