Harwich fund to help mortgage-holders, renters

Harwich selectmen in late January approved the formation of two $50,000 funds, one to help homeowners keep up with their mortgage payments and the other to create affordable rental units.

Harwich Housing Authority Director Valerie Foster said the two programs were made possible in part by the flexibility built into the town’s affordable housing fund, which is not a conventional housing trust.

The program for homeowners will provide up to $2,500 in short-term assistance for mortgage payments. To receive the money, Foster said, owners will have to demonstrate the ability to continue to meet their mortgage obligations once the $2,500 has been used. Recipients also must receive mortgage counseling.

The money for the fund comes from, among other sources, lease revenue the town receives for a cell-phone tower.

The $50,000 allocated for the rental-assistance program is part of a larger program intended to keep more rental units in Harwich affordable, Foster said. The three-year pilot program is expected to have a budget of about $246,000. Funding is contingent on Town Meeting allocating about $190,000 in Community Preservation Act funds toward the program this spring.

“I’m hoping that Town Meeting is going to be as supportive as the Board of Selectmen has been,” Foster said.

Fully funding the program, she said, would lead to the creation of 18 affordable rental units.