Our Residents

Springfield Housing Authority is on the lookout for rental assistance tenants who want to be homeowners.

To that end, SHA has a new Section 8 Homeownership Program Coordinator – Loleta Collins.

Collins joined the authority recently to help in the ongoing quest with the 10-year-old Homeownership Voucher Program that has to date helped 38 Springfield people move from being renters to first-time homeowners. At the same time, they keep their Section 8 subsidy that helps them pay a mortgage, rather than writing checks to a landlord.

Collins said she has already begun identifying SHA rental assistance recipients who are ready to begin the process.

“We’re very excited about this expanded outreach,” said Collins, who worked 14 years as program manager at the Department of Transitional Assistance in Boston before her return to Springfield. She had lived here prior to moving east.

“We’re trying to help families become self-sufficient. To that end, we want to help people buy their own houses, and be successful homeowners once they move it. We’re here to make this possible,” Collins said.

Collins is the first SHA employee whose sole focus will be the homeownership program. In the past, it was a collaborative effort by staffers who had other work duties.

Springfield Housing Authority IT Technician Michael Laprade with newly hired Homeownership Program Coordinator Loleta Collins.

IT Technician Michael Laprade, who has been key to the implementation of the program and will continue to assist Collins, said having a new focus on the program is sure to help. He also said that the program has proven a success story with each individual or family who has bought a house here.

“We’re very excited about having Loleta on board, because she can devote more time to this than any of us were able to,” Laprade said. “We’d love to get more people into homeownership, as opposed to renting.”

The program, sponsored by U.S. Housing and Urban Development, allows local housing authorities to participate in helping Section 8 recipients to qualify for mortgages, find houses, and make the transition to first-time homeowner, all the while keeping their rental assistance vouchers.

At SHA, Section 8 Director Joseph D’Ascoli said this agency is solidly behind the program.

“I like this program is because it gives a participant on the Section 8 Program a chance to live an American Dream of owning their own home and build some equity for themselves,” D’Ascoli said.

The Section 8 Homeownership Program not only enables renters to buy homes and keep their housing assistance, but it also gives them assistance in budgeting and money management, and the special interest rates available to first-time homeowners, D’Ascoli said.

Having Collins on board is sure to expand the local program, he added.

“I’m confident that we will see more of our renters getting into homes they can call their own,” he said. “Ms. Collins is already a great addition to our team.

SHA Homeownership Program Coordinator Loleta Collins.

Based out of the SHA Section 8 Rental Assistance Office at 67 Sanderson St., Collins has been working to identify interested renters, determine whether they are eligible, get them into the required education/training sessions, and connect them with banks. To qualify, applicants must have worked a job for at least one year, have a Section 8 subsidy in Springfield for at least one year, and be a tenant in good standing. They must also meet income level requirements, which vary by family size and are also different for elderly and handicapped people.

Hampden Bank has been participating in the SHA homeownership program since it began, Collins said. She is looking to work with additional banks as well.

Once people are placed in their homes, SHA continues to work with them for a time to ensure that the new living situation is going well.

“We are ready to go and reaching out now to identify people who would be a good fit for this,” Collins said. “That’s what it’s all about.”

She added, “I think this will go very well. Springfield has a huge supply of affordable housing. I know we can make some great matches. We just need to put the right people with the right homes.”

Anyone interested may call Collins at 413-785-4500, extension 178.