The Austin/Mower County Home Ownership Fund (Fund) was created jointly by the City of Austin and Mower County in March 1997 pursuant to Minnesota Statute Section 471.59. The purpose of this jointly governed organization is to establish and administer a flexible revolving loan fund that will provide home ownership opportunities to families in Mower County, Minnesota, with low and moderate income that are currently unable to purchase a home.

Down-Payment, Closing Cost, and Rehabilitation Assistance
Funds are available in the City of Austin and throughout Mower County that provide a 2% loan up to $6,000 to help cover down-payment and closing costs, or the rehabilitation necessary to purchase a home.  Contact your local real estate agent, local lender, or City Hall at (507) 437-9959 regarding this funding.

• Process
• Application
• Loan Criteria
• Lender and realtor checklist
• Borrower profile that lender fills out

Home Stretch Homebuyer Training Program
The A/MCHF requires potential homebuyers to attend homebuyer training workshops.  These workshops cover all aspects of homeownership, including:

• Financing Homeownership
• Qualifying for Your Mortgage
• Barriers to Homeownership
• Shopping for a Home
• The Purchase Process
• Closing on Your Home
• Life as a Homeowner

Home Loan Programs
Local lenders and organizations such as Rural Development offer a variety of home loan mortgage programs for first time homebuyers and income eligible families.

For more information contact local lenders or Rural Development at (507) 433-8429.

Funding Sources
The following agencies provided funding for the programs listed in this brochure.  Without their support, these programs would not be possible:

• The Minnesota Housing Finance Agency
• The City of Austin
• Mower County
• The Initiative Fund
• The Development Corporation of Austin
• Family Connections
• Hormel Foundation